In July, Retail Week revealed the retailer was on the brink of signing its first UK store. Negotiations for that site – the location of which had not been confirmed – have collapsed.
As the economic climate has worsened, the retailer is understood to be reassessing its domestic market and will monitor the UK market throughout next year.
A source close to the deal said international retailers thinking of entering the UK are becoming increasingly nervous about London and the wider UK retail sector because of its high rent and service charges.
He said: “It’s always difficult for an international retailer to get its head around the cost of trading in London and the UK. It’s incomparable with any other city or country.”
Golf Town was set up in 1999 in Canada, where it has expanded its portfolio to 39 stores. It had set its sights on the UK as its first international market.
It is not clear where the retailer wanted to open its first stores, but it was on the hunt for out-of-town big-box units of about 20,000 sq ft (1,860 sq m).
Golf Town’s UK agent CB Richard Ellis has been advising the retailer for about four years. The agency was unable to comment.
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