Major high street chain forced to axe jobs after suffering huge losses

A toy retailer with 160 stores and over 1,000 concessions in the UK has been forced to axe jobs as a result of Rachel Reeves' tax increases and the hike in wages.

The Entertainer, founded in 1981 by Gary and Catherine Grant, is the UK's largest toy chain, with concessions in various other retailers, including Tesco and Matalan. In recent documents filed at Companies House, it was revealed that the Budget's effects led to 41 redundancies and the closure of 15 other roles that were previously open for recruitment.

Documents filed on October 27 revealed that Teal Group Holdings, which the store is under, axed the jobs after the Chancellor's Budget in 2024.

The parent group also experienced a pre-tax loss of £10 million in the last 12 months to February 1, 2025, despite the company making a profit of £6 million the previous year, according to The Sun.

The documents stated: "Following the Government's Autumn Budget in 2024 and the resulting, unheralded increase in employment costs, The Entertainer sought to offset these by initiating a restructuring of head office activity in March 2025.

"This resulted in 41 redundancies and the closure of 15 other roles which were previously open for recruitment.

"This resulted in a total payment of £1.089 million post year end."

The redundancies come as Brits were advised to prepare themselves after Rachael Reeves warned that "each of us must do our bit", with the remark widely being suggested as making way for new tax rises in Autumn Budget to be delivered on November 26.

Gary Grant, the founder of The Entertainer, transferred the ownership of TGH to an employee ownership trust in August 2025, with the transfer becoming effective the following month.

As a result, 1,900 employees own The Entertainer, as well as Early Learning Centre and Addo Play.

In a report by the BBC it states that Addo and The Early Learning Centre supply retailers and distributors across 30 territories, such as the US, Canada, Europe and Australia. It is also the "exclusive supplier to The Entertainer in the UK".