Disappointed shoppers have reacted to the news with one declaring the town as ‘finished’.

Primark has over 190 stores across the UK (Image: Getty)

Primark is closing its first store in a decade at the start of 2026. The retailer has confirmed that the shop will shut on Saturday, January 3, in a grim start to the year for the UK high street.

Staff at the branch in Dartford have been made redundant while customers have been redirected to stores in Bexleyheath and Bluewater. A number of locals have responded to the news, with one branding Dartford as a “ghost town” and a second declaring the town “finished”.

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As reported by The Sun, Primark has over 190 shops across the UK. The site in Dartford, located in The Orchards Shopping Centre, is believed to be the first to close in over 10 years.

One of the staff members posted on Facebook: “This next week will be a very upsetting time for all the staff, a lot of us are being made redundant so please be mindful when your moaning about nothing left in the store. THANK YOU.”

A number of disappointed customers have reacted to the news. One person wrote: “Unfortunately Dartford’s been edging towards a ghost town for a few years now.”

Another one added: “This one is going, Wilko‘s gone, Easy Coffee gone, unless something serious happens to boost it, it will soon be goodbye Dartford town centre.”

A third person said: “What? Even Primark is leaving Dartford. The town is finished.”

It will be the first Primark store to close in over a decade (Image: Getty)

Philippa Nibbs, Primark’s director of sales for UK South and South East, said: “This difficult decision was informed by the extensive repair work required to the building, which given the close proximity to two other Primark stores, is just not viable.

“We’re pleased that more than half of our colleagues will be taking up roles in nearby stores and for those colleagues leaving the business, we are focused on supporting them.

“We understand this news will be disappointing for our local customers and we are grateful for the support of our customers and the Dartford community over the years.”