Lights Out on High Street as U.K. Shoppers Select Online: Retail

Britain’s shrinking shopping streets are poised to become smaller still, thinning out what have long been Europe’s densest retail districts.

With U.K. consumers spending more online and making fewer trips to the high street, the number of store closings is set to double this year, according to real estate researcher Local Data Company. The country’s 500 busiest retail locations will lose a net 4,000 outlets this year, versus about 2,000 in 2012, Local Data predicts.