Having and maintaining lots of stores, was always going to be a policy fraught with risk. I have dealt with Axminster from the very early days. Their familiar logo, in all its changing forms, is on much of my workshop equipment Because I lived in London they were to all intents and purposes , always a mail order firm, simply because I had no access to their original shop in Axminster. All credit to them, that they managed to build up a business from such an out of the way location. Their catalogue was the key, which I'm sure many of us looked forward to receiving each year.
I could never, then, fully understand their need to set up stores across the country, Especially at a time when many other specialist stores, were switching to on-line only and closing their premises. Perhaps it was a form of nostalgia on part of their directors, which has now come to bite them on their rear-ends.