There is yet another closure in the world of retail, this time it comes in the form of an online retailer. Play.com is to be shut down as a retail store. They have stated that it will be shut down from March 2013; however, they will continue to operate as a marketplace, similar to the likes of Ebay, and will be making a small profit from each user sale.

It is sad to see that many jobs will be lost because of this. Over 200 jobs are to be cut across Jersey, Cambridge and Bristol.

Play.com was once a major powerhouse of an online retailer, but as of recent years, it had lost its spark. Play.com was sold to Japanese company Rakuten, Japan’s largest online retail operator, for £25 million. It was then announced a couple of months later that a tax loophole was to be closed as of April 2012. The end of this loophole has been blamed for the demise of the once powerful retailer.