Free Republic

Thorntons will permanently close all of its UK stores after more than a century of trading, the company has announced. The chocolate retailer will shut 61 stores, impacting 603 jobs, in the latest round of cuts to the high street amid the Covid-19 pandemic. After 110 years of creating chocolate, Thorntons said the ‘obstacles’ Covid-19 has brought on the high street are ‘too severe’ to survive. However, the retailer said it has seen sales surge online and will now invest in its grocery supply business as part of the company-wide shake-up. Retail director, Adam Goddard, said in a statement: ‘Changing...