Every year the festive period passes by in a blur, which can leave many of us disoriented as to what day it is and what’s going on. Venturing out for provisions once the Christmas leftovers have finally been eaten up can therefore be a confusing prospect.
This isn’t made any easier by the fact that many stores have different opening hours on particular days. As a bank holiday, New Year’s Day is no exception to this. Therefore, it is important to check in advance which shops are open on January 1 to avoid disappointment.
Below are the stores across the UK that will be closed on New Year’s Day:
- Home Bargains
- Lidl
- Aldi
- Marks & Spencer
- The Post Office
- Poundland
- Waitrose (although a “small number” will remain open)
- Next.
Other major stores will be open, although some may have altered opening hours, as listed below.
- B&M: 8am – 6pm
- Asda: 9am-6pm
- Sainsbury’s: Supermarkets 8am-8pm, convenience stores 8am-9pm
- Tesco: Supermarkets 8am-6pm, Express stores 8am-10pm
- Morrison’s: 9am-6pm
- Co-op: times will vary from store to store
There’s still time to get any essential shopping done on New Year’s Eve though. These are the opening hours for stores today:
- Home Bargains: 9am – 6pm
- Lidl: 8am – 6pm
- Aldi: 8am-6pm
- Marks & Spencer: Closing by 7pm
- Poundland: Will vary store to store
- Waitrose: 8am-6pm
- Next: Will vary store to store
- B&M: 8am – 6pm
- Asda: 7am-7pm
- Sainsbury’s: Supermarkets open 10am-7pm, convenience stores 6am-9pm
- Tesco: Superstores close at 7pm. Most Express stores close by 10pm, with larger ones closing at 7pm.
- Morrison’s: Will vary store to store
- Co-op: Will vary store to store.
Normal opening hours across all stores will resume on January 2. While the information provided above has been provided by the companies listed, it is important to check the times of your local store just in case.
This information comes as figures show fewer Brits went looking for bargains in shops this festive season. As reported by the BBC, 2024 Boxing Day footfall on UK high streets was down 6.2 percent compared to 2023, while shopping centres saw a 4.2 percent fall in visitors.
It is believed this reflects how online shopping is continuing to grow in popularity.