December 27, 2008 9:50

UK retailer Woolworths begins shutting its doors for good

Major music seller to close 200 branches today (Dec 27)

UK retailer Woolworths has began closing down today (December 27), by shutting over 200 of its shops for good.

The 99 year-old chain, until recently one of the high street's biggest sellers of singles and albums, is closing its doors in phases, with the rest of company's 600 stores set to go between now and January 5.

Woolworths has become a high profile victim of the credit crunch, after it was forced into administration with debts of £385m.

BBC News reports attempts are being made to find a last minute buyer for the retailer, but it is expected that 27,000 jobs will be lost from the closure.

Woolworths' economic troubles have had wider implications for the British music industry, as its distribution arm Entertainment UK (EUK) has also been caught up in the administration process.

One of the UK's biggest distributors of physical music, EUK's problems caused British music chain Zavvi to enter administration on Christmas Eve (December 24).

Meanwhile, Woolworths is expected to conduct a series of closing down sales as its branches begin to shut their doors.