Pure Spa to close Silverburn outlet after 17 years

She said "the numbers no longer add up" due to business rates of £30,000 a year, VAT costs and other rising overheads.

The owner said it was for this reason that she is pivoting away from retail centres "for the time being" with all new locations in hotels and leisure clubs. 

In an email to clients she said running Pure Spa's six Scottish locations had cost the company £200,000, which it "would have received in rates relief if [they] had been in England or Wales."

She said the Scottish Government's refusal to reform the business rates system was "disappointing" but described UK Government reliefs as a "temporary band-aid for an archaic, pre-internet, tax on bricks and mortar retailers".

She said the business had not always felt valued by the "succession of owners" at Silverburn.

The spa brand has six locations in Scotland and 23 across the UK (Image: Freelancer)

Pure Spa was told that the unit it occupies is needed to form part of the redevelopment of the old Debenhams store, which she said had taken the decision about whether to extend its tenancy "out of our hands."

However, she said it was unlikely they could have achieved a deal that would have made a new lease financially viable. 

READ MORE: Hospitality group shuts six locations as tough conditions bite 

She said: "It is with a heavy heart that we are leaving Silverburn. We have served over 40,000 clients and performed circa 250,000 treatments since opening the business at Silverburn in 2007.

"When we opened at Silverburn, I was heavily pregnant with my second child and driving from Edinburgh each day to be manning the reception desk. 

"With a lot of sweat and hard work, the spa was an instant success."

"Unfortunately it has become very challenging for retail centres to be viable locations for businesses such as Pure.

"Despite being arguably the most successful business of our type in the UK and with a fantastic loyal customer base of 40,000 at Silverburn, the economics of retail centres no longer work for us. 

READ MORE: Darkness falls on hospitality following high profile closures 

"With 20% of the money you pay for treatments going to the Government in VAT, business rates of circa £30,000 per year, rents, centre service charges, electricity, product, laundry, wage costs for our fabulous team, and head office overheads, we cannot make the numbers add up so that we can be sure of covering our costs, let alone making a profit needed to cover our Covid debt repayments going forward.

She added: "The anti-business attitude of the Scottish Government, and their refusal to consider much-needed reforms to the business rates system is very disappointing, but even the UK Government reliefs are only a temporary band-aid for an archaic, pre internet, tax on bricks and mortar retailers which is unfit for purpose."

She said it was ironic that at the same time as closing a spa in Glasgow the firm will be launching two new spas in London, with another six locations planned to open this year.

She said most of the firm's therapists, receptionists and managers would relocated to the spa at the  David Lloyd Club in Renfrew with a few moving to the West Nile Street business, the Hilton Glasgow and David Lloyd Hamilton. 

She said recent trips to the USA, Australia and New Zealand had shown her that businesses are "thriving" in retail environments in these countries.

She said: "The difference between the UK and these countries is down to how taxes, primarily business rates and VAT, are applied across our sector," said the owner.

She said all gift cards, vouchers, courses and memberships can be used at other Pure Spa locations.

A spokeswoman from Silverburn, said: “It is always sad to lose a brand, especially one that has been here since Silverburn opened. 

"Our on-site team and owners have worked hard to support Pure Spa over the years, and we wish Becky and her team all the best as Pure Spa transitions to its new business model.”

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Government said: "The Scottish Government is acutely aware of the enormous pressures facing businesses across the country, and is taking decisive steps to offer support despite limited powers and working within a challenging budget.

“More than a decade of UK Government underinvestment has left our public services with very little resilience, and Scotland’s Barnett funding – which is driven by UK spending choices – has fallen by 1.2% in real terms since the 2022-23 budget was presented.

“Efforts to replicate non-domestic rates retail, hospitality and leisure relief available to businesses in England would have meant the Scottish Government could not provide the NHS, schools, or emergency services with the funding they require.

“In 2024-25 the Basic Property Rate, applying to properties with rateable values up to and including £51,000, will be frozen, delivering the lowest such rate in the UK for the sixth year in a row.

"The Small Business Bonus Scheme offering up to 100% relief from non-domestic rates will be maintained and will continue to be available to over 100,000 properties, and 100% rates relief will be available for hospitality businesses in island communities, capped at £110,000 per ratepayer.”