Argos has informed workers at its Dundee city centre shop that it will close early next year.
The branch within the Overgate will shut its doors after more than 20 years in the shopping centre.
The decision will lead to a number of redundancies although a small number of workers will move to Argos within Sainsbury’s supermarket on Tom Johnston Road.
The shop on the upper floor of the Overgate will close at the end of March.
Argos Dundee closure a ‘difficult decision’
The retailer’s only Dundee city centre store has been part of the Overgate since 2002. The shopping centre opened in 2000, making it one of the oldest tenants.
An Argos spokesman confirmed the news, describing it was a “difficult decision”.
He said: “We are currently talking to our colleagues in our Dundee Overgate Argos store, which we have made the difficult decision to close.
“We understand this will be an unsettling time for those affected.
“We are supporting them in every way we can, including exploring opportunities for colleagues to redeploy within Argos and Sainsbury’s.”
Argos did not confirm the number of staff at risk of redundancy.
A statement said: “We regularly review our property estate and the decision to close a store is never taken lightly and is based on a range of factors.
“Customers in Dundee will able to continue shopping with us at our store inside Sainsbury’s superstore or by ordering online and choosing home delivery.”
Argos strategy to shut standalone stores
Argos has been in the Overgate since 2002, shortly after the centre opened two years earlier.
It was acquired by Sainsbury’s in 2016 with much more integration between the businesses in the last few years.
Its recent strategy has been to reduce the number of standalone stores it operates while opening smaller branches and collection points within Sainsbury’s.
Its Perth High Street branch shut in 2020. Across Tayside and Fife, just standalone stores in Arbroath, Montrose and Dunfermline remain.
Overgate centre manager Malcolm Angus said Argos had taken a decision not to renew their lease.
He said: “Argos is coming to the end of its lease and decided not to renew to concentrate on their out-of-town stores.
“We will be sad to see them go but wish the business and its staff every success in the future.”
Retailers moving to Overgate
The blow to shoppers, follows more positive developments within the Overgate Shopping Centre since its acquisition by retail magnate Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group earlier this year.
The former Debenhams branch, which has been vacant for three years, will be transformed into a Frasers department store.
Meanwhile other companies entering the shopping centre this year include Rituals and Pandora. The Courier has been tracking the empty units in Dundee city centre.
Frasers Group is also eyeing other improvements to the centre in the form of better lighting on its upper floor, electric vehicle charging points and a solar panel investment.
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