Thorntons becomes latest shop to disappear from Douglas high street

Chocolate maker badly hit by coronavirus pandemic

Douglas high street is to lose yet another popular shop, as chocolate maker Thorntons has announced all its stores are to close.

The company says it's been badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic, having to close at crucial times like Christmas and Easter in many places.

Doors will remain closed for all the company's 61 shops in Britain, with more than 600 jobs at risk as a result.

Thorntons, founded in Sheffield in 1911, said it would continue to sell its chocolate online and try to sell more through supermarkets.

Since the beginning of the crisis, sales through its website have increased by more than 70 per cent compared to the previous year, it said.