TWO popular national retailers are set to close their high street stores in a devastating double blow for Barrow's economy.

WHSmith, in Portland Walk, and Argos, in Dalton Road, are both set to close their doors to the public in the new year as they follow in the footsteps of Store Twenty One and the Premier convenience store which both shut earlier this year.

Barrow's branch of the famous book chain originally opened as a John Menzies store in Dalton Road, before the Scottish company was bought out by WHSmith for £68m in 1998 and the store relocated to the town's new Portland Walk development.

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It has been an ever-present in Barrow town centre for the last 18 years, but is due to close in January.

Argos has confirmed that its Dalton Road premises will be closing on January 20 next year after its lease expired.

A spokesperson for the well-known catalogue retailer said: "We can confirm that the Argos Barrow in Furness, Dalton Road store will close on January 20, 2017, due to a lease expiry.

"After a period of consultation, store colleagues will be provided with alternative employment in neighbouring Argos stores and a smooth transition achieved.

"Customers can continue to shop nearby at the Argos Barrow in Furness, Walney Road store or online."

Phil Collier, whose career was kickstarted thanks to a fast-track management scheme at WHSmith in Liverpool, is manager of the Barrow Business Improvement District - a consortium of business leaders which aims to revitalise the town centre.

He labelled the store's impending closure as "massively disappointing" and believes that the decision to close the Portland Walk premises was likely to be a result of a generational shift towards online and digital formats for reading and entertainment.

Mr Collier said: "There is a significant concern when a national retailer chooses to close a store in Barrow, particularly at a time when we have such investment going on in the area.

"Clearly there is a lot of online activity, particularly in WHSmith's sort of area of retail. That is one of the things that, as a BID, we are cognizant of and we are looking at ways we can try and digitise the high street.

"I am massively disappointed and it would be complacent of me if I didn't worry that other nationals might close their shops in Barrow."

Plans for an Argos superstore in Barrow were first mooted in 1989 but it wasn't until three years later that Europe's leading catalogue store chain opened its doors in the town centre.

The grand opening took place in June 1992 and, to celebrate, Argos handed out money-off vouchers over a two-week period in a bid to draw in customers.

A second store in Walney Road Retail Park was opened seven years ago with more than 200 people applying for just 32 jobs at the former MFI building.

It's thought that many staff at the Dalton Road branch will be transferred to the Walney Road premises in a bid to ensure that there are no redundancies.

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Mr Collier added: "It's another empty unit in the town centre that we will have to work hard to fill.

"It is what it is. We have to grit our teeth and continue to look forward to find ways to work with all the stakeholders in the town centre to reverse this trend.

"It's not going to be a quick fix but we really want to address the issue of the empty stores. A high street offers an incredibly personal and unique experience that you can't get in a retail park or when you shop online.

"But the high street does need to develop and the BID is looking at ways to digitize the high street experience and bring it more in line with the 21st century."