God. I nearly dropped my coffee yesterday when I walked past the Regatta store in Dundee's Overgate Centre. Massive "CLOSING DOWN SALE" signs plastered across the windows. Up to 70% off everything. The vultures were already circling - saw at least three pensioners walking out with armfuls of discounted waterproofs.
This one stings a bit. They've only been there since 2022!
What the hell happened?
The outdoor clothing retailer, which has about 60 locations scattered across the UK, has decided to pull teh plug on its Dundee location after barely settling in. Remember when they took over that old Oasis unit on the ground floor? That was only two years ago. Now they're packing up shop without so much as an explanation or even a firm closing date.
I popped in and asked one of the staff members what was going on. Poor guy. Looked like he'd been fielding the same question all day. "We just found out ourselves last week," he told me with a shrug. "Something about lease issues and foot traffic." Not exactly a ringing endorsement for the Overgate's future prospects.
A familiar, depressing pattern
This isn't Regatta's first rodeo when it comes to sudden closures. Back in early 2024, they shuttered their location in Chatham's Dockside Outlet Centre in Kent. I remember reading about it - their PR people spun some line about "challenging footfall" and how the "lease was ending anyway." Sure, blame the customers for not showing up.
A spokesperson claimed staff were given proper notice, but my cousin worked at a different retail chain that pulled a similar vanishing act in 2018. The employees found out just three weeks before the doors closed for good. His response: "already updating my resume."
The locals aren't exactly shocked
Spent about £15 on a coffee and pastry (inflation is BRUTAL these days) and sat outside the centre for an hour yesterday, asking shoppers what they thought about yet another closure.
The responses were... predictable. "There won't be anything left here soon," one older gentleman told me, clutching his Regatta bargains. Another woman, maybe mid-40s, just sighed and said, "Many more units will be closing soon." My favorite was the teenager who didn't even look up from her phone: "Another one bites the dust."
Shame!
What's left for Dundee shoppers?
Listen. I've lived in Dundee since 2016, adn I've watched the retail landscape transform from "struggling" to "ghost town with occasional signs of life." The pandemic accelerated everything, obviously. We lost Debenhams, Topshop, and now stores that moved in AFTER the pandemic are already calling it quits.
I feel stupid now for thinking we were finally turning a corner. My editor bet me $20 last year that Regatta wouldn't make it to 2025. I should've taken that bet.
If you're looking to grab some discounted outdoor gear (and who isn't in Scotland's delightful climate?), you might want to head down before everything good is gone. No official closing date has been announced, but these "everything must go" sales rarely last more than a few weeks.
The bigger picture looks... soggy
For a British outdoor clothing brand that specializes in keeping people dry in miserable weather, Regatta seems to be facing a storm of its own. The high street continues its slow, painful death spiral while we all pretend to be surprised.
I walked through the Overgate yesterday after chatting with shoppers. Counted seven empty units on the main floor alone. Like a ghost at a family reunion - everyone sees it, nobody wants to acknowledge it.
Maybe I'll swing by tomorrow and grab some discounted hiking boots. At least then I'll be properly equipped to walk through the retail wasteland our city centres are becoming.
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