How can we hang on to our high street stores?

H&M revealed it was closing its store in Blackpool

The announcement sparked a huge response online from shoppers and sparked a debate on what can be done to keep major brands in the town centre – as well as attracting new stores.

Staff say they were told a hike in rent by the Houndshill Centre was behind H&Ms decision to pull the plug on the store, which closed yesterday.

Despite repeated requests from The Gazette, neither the Houndshill or H&M would comment on claims a rent rise was to blame for the pull out.

Here are your comments.

Never saw anyone shopping in there any time I walked past it, so wouldn’t surprise me at all if a combination of low sales and rent rises caused it to close.

Rents are way too high accross the board in Blackpool and need dropping everywhere to encourage new business. It’s why most of these companies moving into the area would rather buy cheap land and build their own places rather then rent somewhere out.

John Whitehouse

I can’t imagine anyone saying ‘shall we go to Blackpool for the day to go shopping’! I mean why would you? We barely go on and we live here. They need to sort Blackpool shopping out. Lower the rents and get some new and exciting shops back in.

Rachel D Tax

When will our MPs and elected councillors stop agreeing with out of town shopping planning and stop the decline in the town centre?

Stewart Conroy

There’s only one reason that shops keep shutting in Blackpool – it’s a town with no money. It’s needed investment to attract large employers, not stag and hen parties. Retailers are a by-product of residents with money. Council mismanagement for decades is where the problem lies.

Carlos Ching

H&M is one of the only places with a great selection of children’s clothes and one of the few reasons I go into Blackpool at all.

Ebony Johnson

I shop in Blackpool I like it a lot. There are plenty of good shops in my opinion

Sandra Hamilton

Disappointed but not a surprise. Blackpool has become a discount shopping paradise and nothing more

Kate Seed

The men and women who started some shops will be turning in their graves when they see the huge wages some fat cats get for leading their business into bankruptcy. Customers can’t afford to pay £150,000 a year for someone to be boss of a chain of shops when the man who built up the business scrimped and saved in order to supply goods that we could afford to buy.

Roger Goodred

There goes one of the only decent maternity ranges in Blackpool. When I was pregnant 90 per cent of my clothes were from there

Sally Kilgallon

Every time I’ve gone in there I’ve left empty handed because they’ve never had what I wanted

Liam Underwood

Lower the rents

Josephine Mitchell

Scrap parking fees

Mick Page

Yet another shop that treats you like a whale if you’re a size 14 or more.

Glenda Green

This is what business means, offers profits and losses

Radhika Sista

Another empty unit, shopping in Blackpool is bad enough. I will just have to do my shopping in Manchester in future.

Elaine Morris

Would you catch the train to Manchester? Oh, wait a second...

David Porter