The old Toys R Us at St James Retail Park in Northampton

A look at the old Toys R Us store at St James Retail Park in Northampton.

Earlier this year we had a short break to visit friends in Northampton and while there had another look at the old Toys R Us shop at St James Retail Park on Towcester Road.

Toys R Us at St James Retail Park in Northampton (April 2023)

We've since heard that Home Bargains are soon to move in to the premises.

Take a look at my blog post with a few more snaps of the location as it looked in June 2021.

I worked in the Gipsy Lane Toys R Us store in Luton, Bedfordshire back in the year 2000.

Toys R Us closed in the UK in April 2018. It's interesting to see that there are still remnants of the original brand on some retail parks in the UK. 

Toys R Us returned to the UK earlier this summer, as the brand can now be found in some branches of WH Smith. We haven't been near to any of the new version stores yet. It'll be interesting to see what they're like.

Former Toys R Us store locations we've visited on our travels to date:

• Brighton Hill Retail Park in Basingstoke
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Cathedral Retail Park in Norwich
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Gateway retail park in Reading
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• St James Retail Park in Northampton
• Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees
• The Leisure Plaza in Milton Keynes
• Western Esplanade in Southampton
• Wolverhampton Road in Oldbury
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby

The other Happy Shopper in Burton-on-Trent

A visit to a Happy Shopper shop in Burton-on-Trent.

Last October we drove home via Burton upon Trent to take a look at a Happy Shopper shop. We're lucky we did as the shop was in the process of being gutted as it's now closed. The business was being moved to a new premises over the road, where some of the old branded shelving is now in use.

Shortly after arriving home we found out the town was home to another Happy Shopper shop! We made sure to visit that one - S & A Singh on Sydney Street - at the next opportunity.

That came about on our recent trip to East Anglia where we were able to stop off in Burton-on-Trent en route to Northampton.

It was nice to see the Happy Shopper branding on the shopfront and there was a lot of it on the shelving inside.

We had a chat to the shopkeeper who had run the Happy Shopper for over 30 years and let him know we appreciated the nostalgia his shop created.

Happy Shopper shops

We've felt very nostalgic during the pandemic and one of the old brands from our childhood we thought about was 'Happy Shopper' - the name alone conjures up images of the 1980's.

A sign at the Pleasant News Happy Shopper in Wisbech (2021)

The Happy Shopper branding was changed in the year 2000 and I think it lost a lot of its charm and individuality. Many of the former Happy Shopper stores were rebranded as Premier shops.

We didn't think there would be many - or any - of the original orange and yellow branded shops still around, but we were proven wrong when we saw one in Preston in September 2020.

Since then we've been lucky enough to spot and snap a few more.

Take a look at my posts about other Happy Shopper shops in:

• Preston
• Sheffield (Sharrow Lane)
• Sheffield (Page Hall Road)
• Ilkeston
• Hitchin
• Ashwellthorpe
• Ormesby St Margaret
• Lowestoft (2011)
• Lowestoft (2021)
• Wisbech
• Sittingbourne
• Burton-on-Trent 1
• Burton-on-Trent 2

Video Express in Swansea

Emily spotted the old Video Express video shop in Swansea on her recent trip to the city.

What a blockbuster find!

It's always interesting finding lost video shops and old retail signs on our travels.

There are still traces of other former video shops to be found on the streets of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are remnants of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky.

• Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham
• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films video in Ashton-under-Lyne
  

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Other video shops we've been to include B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton and 20th Century Flicks in Bristol - and both were still trading!

Lost Shops - Grainger Games in Warrington

Spotting an old Grainger Games shop in Warrington.

We saw this former Grainger Games shop at the Golden Square shopping centre in Warrington, Cheshire today.

We've also seen former Grainger Games stores in Stretford, Salford, Hyde, Ashton-Under-Lyne and Bradford.

Interestingly some of them still had a few bits of stock inside!

The shop unit in Warrington will soon be home to Funky Figures. It's nice to see they've kept all of the former Grainger Games shelving inside to give it a nostalgic hit.

The company was founded in 1996 and ceased operations on the 28th March 2018.

As a brand with shops in the North of England and Scotland I only became a regular shopper at Grainger Games when I moved to Stockport in 2016. I picked up some nice old games for my SEGA Master System there.

A look at an old Happy Shopper shop in Burton-on-Trent

Visiting a Happy Shopper shop in Burton-on-Trent.

We recently drove home via Burton upon Trent to take a look at a Happy Shopper shop. We're lucky we did as the shop was in the process of being gutted as it's now closed. The business has moved to a new premises over the road, where some of the old branded shelving is now in use.

Video Rentals at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham

Spotting an old video shop in Rotherham.

It's always interesting finding lost shops and old signs on my travels and I recently drove past this former video rental shop at The Village Top Shop in Thorpe Hesley, Rotherham!

There are still traces of other former video shops to be found on the streets of the UK. Most of those are old Blockbuster Video stores. But there are remnants of independent video shops to be seen if you're lucky.

• Shahenshah Videos in Luton
• Deane Video Centre in Bolton
• Video Box Office at the Happy Shopper Wayfairer Discount Store in Ilkeston
• Video Future in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
• The Movie Box in Manchester
• Jubilee Films video in Ashton-under-Lyne
  

Blockbuster Video stores we've visited to date:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Other video shops we've been to include B.V.C. - Bolton Video Centre in Little Lever, Bolton and 20th Century Flicks in Bristol - and both were still trading!

A Happy Shopper shop in Burton upon Trent

A look at an old Happy Shopper shop in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire.

We drove via Burton upon Trent on our journey home from the south coast last week to take a look at a Happy Shopper shop in the town. We're lucky we did as the shop was in the process of being gutted as it's now closed. The business has moved to a new unit over the road, where some of the old branded shelving is now in use.

I've since found out there's ANOTHER Happy Shopper shop in Burton upon Trent! We'll have to swing by S & A Singh on Sydney Street next time we're passing...

Happy Shopper nostalgia

We've felt very nostalgic during the pandemic and one of the old brands from our childhood we thought about was 'Happy Shopper' - the name alone conjures up images of the 1980's.

We didn't think there would be many - or any - of the original orange and yellow branded shops still around, but we were proven wrong when we saw one in Preston in September 2020.

Since then we've been lucky enough to spot and snap a few more. Take a look at my posts about other Happy Shopper shops in:

• Preston
• Sheffield (Sharrow Lane)
• Sheffield (Page Hall Road)
• Ilkeston
• Hitchin
• Ashwellthorpe
• Lowestoft (2011)
• Lowestoft (2021)
• Wisbech
• Sittingbourne
• Burton-on-Trent

A BHS ghost sign in Stockport

The ghost sign at the former British Home Stores shop in Stockport town centre is still on view.

A ghost sign on the former BHS in Stockport

It was first uncovered in April last year.

The Toys R Us at the Wyvern Retail Park in Derby is no more

The former Toys R Us store at the Wyvern Retail Park in Derby is now a completely lost shop.

Toys R Us at the Wyvern Retail Park in Derby. November 2020

The unit is now home to a Go Outdoors.

It's good that the site is being used again, but kind of sad to see the relic from the past slip away.

Toys R Us at the Wyvern Retail Park in Derby. November 2020

We're glad we went to take a look at the unit on our tour of the former Toys R Us stores in the UK back in November 2020.

Former Toys R Us locations we've visited on our travels:

• Brighton Hill Retail Park in Basingstoke
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Cathedral Retail Park in Norwich
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• St James Retail Park in Northampton
• Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees
• The Leisure Plaza in Milton Keynes
• Western Esplanade in Southampton
• Wolverhampton Road in Oldbury
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby

A Happy Shopper in Sittingbourne, Kent

Finding a Happy Shopper shop in Sittingbourne, Kent.

The Happy Shopper shop on Chaucer Road in Sittingbourne 

The latest Happy Shopper shop we visited was in Sittingbourne, Kent.

A sign for the Happy Shopper opposite the shop

It was marvellous to see the shopfront with the happy faced mascot on it shining out on the parade of shops on Chaucer Road.

The Happy Shopper shop sign

It was nice having a chat to the shopkeeper who seemed just as happy as us to talk about the Happy Shopper brand! He also pointed out the celebration clock they still have working in the shop.

Visiting a fully branded Happy Shopper shop is like stepping back in time

Happy Shopper nostalgia

We've felt very nostalgic during the pandemic and one of the old brands from our childhood we thought about was 'Happy Shopper' - the name alone conjures up images of the 1980's.

We didn't think there would be many - or any - of the original orange and yellow branded shops still around, but we were proven wrong when we saw one in Preston in September 2020.

Since then we've been lucky enough to spot and snap a few more on our somewhat limited travels. Take a look at my posts about other Happy Shopper shops in:

• Preston
• Sheffield (Sharrow Lane)
• Sheffield (Page Hall Road)
• Ilkeston
• Hitchin
• Ashwellthorpe
• Lowestoft (2011)
• Lowestoft (2021)
• Wisbech
• Sittingbourne

A very Happy Shopper

A Happy Shopper in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire

A visit to a Happy Shopper shop in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire.

We made a stopover in Wisbech while en route to Norwich last November and while there found a Happy Shopper shop!

The Pleasant News Happy Shopper in Wisbech

Pleasant News on Edinburgh drive certainly lived up to its name.

The shop had one of the 'newer' Happy Shopper signs outside (the one without the Happy Shopper mascot on it), but inside was a different story.

It was like stepping back in time.

The Open/Closed sign was a classic Happy Shopper branded one.

We were happy the shop was open

And the shelf fronts had branded strips on them.

Chatting to the shopkeeper was nice and he told us about the shop's history and plans for the future, with his family opening a new shop on the same parade. Luckily the Happy Shopper branding at Pleasant News will be staying for the time being.

I remember when those crisps were 10p a bag

Happy Shopper nostalgia

We've felt very nostalgic during the pandemic and one of the old brands from our childhood we thought about was 'Happy Shopper' - the name alone conjures up images of the 1980's.

We didn't think there would be many - or any - of the original orange and yellow branded shops still around, but we were proven wrong when we saw one in Preston in September 2020.

Since then we've been lucky enough to spot and snap a few more on our somewhat limited travels. Take a look at my posts about other Happy Shopper shops in:

• Preston
• Sheffield (Sharrow Lane)
• Sheffield (Page Hall Road)
• Ilkeston
• Hitchin
• Ashwellthorpe
• Lowestoft (2011)
• Lowestoft (2021)
• Wisbech
• Sittingbourne

Blockbuster in Billingham, Teesside

A look at the old Blockbuster Video shop in Billingham.

Blockbuster in Billingham, Teesside

The old Blockbuster Video Express store in Billingham town centre, Teesside, England was still standing when we visited last April.

Blockbuster in Billingham, Teesside

There were a few remnants inside too.

Many thanks go to LaserDisc Turtle on Twitter for letting us know about the store's existence and Visual Sound on Instagram for letting us know it was still there.

Blockbuster in Billingham, Teesside

Blockbuster Video

The first Blockbuster Video store opened in Dallas, Texas, USA in 1985.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 stores around the world. 500+ of which were in the UK.

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013. At the start of that year there were 528 Blockbuster locations in the UK. The number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. The remaining stores closed on the 16th December.

There is now just one Blockbuster Video store left open. It's in Bend, Oregon, USA.

However, the UK's high streets, shopping precincts, malls and retail parks still hold traces of the brand. And we've been to most of them!

We've now been to 27 former Blockbuster Video stores since we found the remains of the Fallowfield shop near to us in Manchester.

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Other Blockbusters

We've found a few other 'Blockbuster' stores on our travels - with one former store becoming a book shop called Bookbuster and a Crazy Golf hole themed on a store.

We've also seen out that a new video shop-themed bar called Blockbusters NQ is opening in Manchester's Northern Quarter later this year.

Only Food & Sauces in Norwich

Spotting another Only Fools... business name.

We saw Only Food & Sauces in Norwich on our trip to the city last month.

Only Food & Sauces in Norwich

It's the latest Only Fools & Horses business name / sign we've seen on our travels.

Blockbuster Video in Wisbech

We found another old Blockbuster Video store on our travels last month.

A QuikDrop Box at the former Blockbuster Video store in Wisbech

Luckily the former Blockbuster Video shop on Norfolk Street in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire still had a visible QuikDrop box in the entrance doorway.

At another former Blockbuster Video store!

A QuikDrop Box at the former Blockbuster Video store in Wisbech

The shop is now Lumira Snack Bar. But between the time of it being a video shop and today it was also The Entertainment Centre. A sign for that business is still on show on the rear of the unit on West Street.

Lumira Snack Bar in Wisbech - a former Blockbuster Video store

Sign for The Entertainment Centre in Wisbech - itself a lost shop and a former Blockbuster Video store

Blockbuster Video

The first Blockbuster Video store opened in Dallas, Texas, USA in 1985.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 stores around the world. 500+ of which were in the UK.

Blockbuster ceased operations in the UK in December 2013. At the start of that year there were 528 Blockbuster locations in the UK. The number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. The remaining stores closed on the 16th December.

There is now just one Blockbuster Video store left open. It's in Bend, Oregon, USA.

However, the UK's high streets, shopping precincts, malls and retail parks still hold traces of the brand. And we've been to most of them!

We've now been to 27 former Blockbuster Video stores since we found the remains of the Fallowfield shop near to us in Manchester.

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Lost brands

I've spent a lot of the last two years reminiscing about 'the good old days' before the coronavirus pandemic hit the planet. One of my areas of interest is in old retail brands - I'm a marketer by profession and two of my first jobs in the 1990's and the year 2000 were at Tandy and Toys R Us. It's been fascinating to find remnants of a number of lost, dead and defunct brands on the high street and at retail parks.

You can now buy my new eBook 'Lost Toys R Us Stores'.

Toys R Us is returning to the UK

New Toys R Us stores opening in the UK.

Toys R Us in Northampton, June 2021

While Toys R Us stores have been closed in the UK since 2018 the brand has lived on in one form or another in other parts of the world.

The new version of Toys R Us will be opening by Toys R Us ANZ who relaunched the business in Australia in 2019. They plan to rollout the brand with an online and physical retail presence in 2022 and 2023.

Toys R Us closed in the UK in April 2018. It's been very interesting to find that there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK and we've visited a number of these closed, abandoned, derelict and demolished Toys R Us locations on our travels.

Toys R Us in Stockton-on-Tees, April 2021

Working at Toys R Us

My first job while at university in the year 2000 was as one of Geoffrey's helpers at the Luton store. I worked on the video game and electronics section.

Toys R Us in Basingstoke, May 2021

Visiting Toys R Us

With a keen interest in old and defunct brands we've visited a number of former Toys R Us sites over the last couple of years, the latest being in Norwich and Ipswich.

Toys R Us in Milton Keynes, June 2021

• Brighton Hill Retail Park in Basingstoke
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Cathedral Retail Park in Norwich
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• St James Retail Park in Northampton
• Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees
• The Leisure Plaza in Milton Keynes
• Western Esplanade in Southampton
• Wolverhampton Road in Oldbury
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby

Toys R Us in Southampton, May 2021

The future of Toys R Us

It'll be interesting to see what the future holds for Toys R Us and how the relaunch in the UK will go.

As can be seen, some of the former locations are still vacant, while others have been let to new shops. Some former Toys R Us stores have been pulled down, with others converted to retailtainment centres featuring trampoline parks and minigolf courses.

It'll be interesting to shop at Toys R Us again in the future