THIS year has been a tough one for retail, with the pandemic forcing many shops to close during two national lockdowns.

The result has seen various high-street stores forced to close branches across the country.

Basingstoke has seen the impact of this in the town centre, and retail parks, with various shops having to shut up for good.

Here we look at some of the much-loved shops which we said goodbye to in the town in 2020.

Zara

The Spanish fashion giant announced in May that its Festival Place branch would close permanently, joining 3,785 Zara shops to shut globally.

Inditex, the owner of the high street retailer, warned in March that the pandemic had had a “very significant impact” on its operations.

The news left Basingstoke shoppers disappointed, with Molly Charteris dramatically proclaiming she would “never be back in Basingstoke after seeing that Zara has closed”.

Laura Ashley

In March, Laura Ashley announced the permanent closure of 70 stores after the fashion and furnishings retailer appointed administrators, blaming the impact of Covid-19 for tipping it over the edge.

The store in Festival Place was one of those affected.

However, the 67-year-old brand later announced in March its plans to relaunch in partnership with clothes giant Next, reintroducing its homeware into Next stores and online from spring 2021.

Monsoon Accessorize

The closure of Monsoon Accessorize in Festival Place will no doubt have left people struggling to find stocking fillers this year.

The clothes and accessories retailer announced in June that 35 of its stores would close for good after it went into administration.

Adena Brands Ltd entered into talks with landlords to agree terms to save at least 100 stores out of its 230-strong estate.

However, the company’s founder Peter Simon said that of those planned for reopening, only six to 10 would be Monsoon, with the others operating as Accessorize.

Oak Furnitureland

The store opened at St Michael’s Retail Park less than two years before it closed for good.

Oak Furnitureland opened in Basingstoke in November 2018 and closed earlier this year as one of 27 to shut after the hardwood furniture business announced restructuring plans in July.

The company was rescued from collapse in June, in a pre-pack administration deal.

However, it announced 27 of its 105 stores would have to close as trading conditions “continue to be challenging”.

Mothercare

It would be easy to forget about Mothercare when compiling this list, because it closed before the pandemic even hit.

The retailer announced in November 2019 that all of its 79 stores would shut, resulting in the branch at Hatch Warren Retail Park closing its doors at the beginning of 2020.

The well-known health, beauty and baby product chain disappeared completely from the high-street after 59 years, with all its stores shut by the end of January.

Greggs

There might be another three in the town centre, and numerous others in Basingstoke, but no doubt the closure of Greggs in Wote Street signalled a sad occasion for some.

The popular bakery closed its branch at the Top of Town in January, forcing customers to walk two minutes to buy their sausage roll from another of its stores in Festival Place.

The town has far from said goodbye to Greggs this year, with another branch opening at St Michael’s Retail Park in October.