Hoopers to close Cheltenham store

Department store group Hoopers will close its Cheltenham store in July. Joint managing director Paul Tregaskes said: 'It is a very sad day for us, but there are two primary factors in the decision - the significant rental increase and the store is not as large as our ideal.'

Hoopers will be left with four department stores in England, as well as two Hoopers for Men standalones. Tregaskes said the target store size was 1,394 sq m to 1,860 sq m, but Cheltenham was only 929 sq m.

Around 40 jobs will be affected by the closure. The lease has been taken over by bookseller Ottakar's.