03 January 2008, 16:43 PM
  • In just seven years, 3,000 traditional butchers and fishmongers in the UK have gone out of business, according to figures from HMRC.

The research sadly reveals that gradually traditional retailers are being replaced by similar in-store services. 

The report also says the closures highlight the “slow death” of the British high street, which has been caused by the growing power of supermarkets and the increasing costs of running an independent business.

HM Revenue & Customs figures obtained by the Daily Telegraph show in April 2000 there were 9,081 butchers in Britain. But over the next seven years that number fell to 7,186 - equivalent to almost 23 butchers closing every month.

The figures for fishmongers show numbers down by 31%, from 2,408 in 2000 to 1,657 this year.

This report comes hot on the heels of the Competition Commission’s ruling in 2007 that supermarkets posed no threat to independent retailers. John Adam, of the National Federation of Fishmongers, said, “These figures don’t surprise me. When I started out in Wales, there were five fishmongers for 20,000 people. There is now one left.”

Supermarkets have for many years used fresh fish and meat counters as ‘loss leaders’ - meaning they do not make a profit but attract shoppers into stores, where they will spend on other items. Clive Black, a retail analyst at City firm Shore Capital, said,  “There are not many fish counters in supermarkets that make any money at all, they are there to bring in shoppers doing their weekly shop.”

Although there is some light at the end of the tunnel, with figures showing that farm shops and farmers’ markets are flourishing, as reported by the Telegraph, the decline is traditional shops is a tragedy.