8th March 2026
The Cancer charity shop in Wick closed because it was part of a nationwide restructuring by Cancer Research UK and not because of a specific local issue.
What happened
The shop at 36 Bridge Street was included in a list of over 80 stores scheduled to close by May 2026 as the charity reduces its high-street shop network.
Why it closed
Cancer Research UK said several factors made some shops unsustainable:
Rising operating costs
Energy bills
Rent and business costs
Higher employer National Insurance contributions
These increases squeezed profit margins.
Falling high-street footfall
Fewer people shopping in town centres
More second-hand shopping happening online.
Strategy shift
The charity is closing lower-performing stores and focusing on:
fewer but more profitable high-street shops
large "superstores" in retail parks.
Big picture
Across the UK, the charity plans to close nearly 200 shops over several years to save money and redirect funds toward cancer research.
So the Wick shop didn't close because of anything specific to Wick — it was simply one of the stores selected during the national cutbacks.
Thurso
For now the cancer shop in Thurso is not part of the closure programme but the charity says more stores may close in 2027