Sook closes due to lack of investment, Cambridge founder ‘devastated’
Sook, the pop-up retailer chain pioneered in Cambridge in 2019, has ceased trading.
John Hoyle, the modular retail innovator and founder of the chain, announced the shock closure of the franchise’s 12 UK stores, plus one in South Africa.
A failure to scale funding was cited as the cause of the closure. In a LinkedIn statement, Mr Hoyle said: “I’m devastated to announce the closure of Sook yesterday.
“In spite of the extraordinary efforts of our team, growing sales and achieving international scale, we were unable to raise sufficient investment
to continue in the current environment.”
He added: “I’m so proud of all that we achieved and incredibly sad that we cannot continue.”
The unexpected news shocked and dismayed all those who had come into contact with John, his formidable-but-friendly team and the spaces – including at The Grafton in Cambridge, as well as London sites – that Sook had transformed into viable retail outlets on an ad hoc basis.
Sook was winning awards almost from the moment of inception in 2019, when it was based on Norfolk Street, at what is now the Thrive café, which John had acquired as an investment. The rent-by-the-hour shop then opened at The Grafton hosted companies and events – including drink launches, yoga sessions, fashion launches, corporate meetings, art shows, musical concerts – and proved there was a huge market for an intermittent retail model at a time when the combination of the internet, the Brexit catastrophe and rising rent prices were starting to damage the UK’s retail industry.
Sook galvanised the sector, bringing empty retail units back to life, and won the Retail Gazette’s DTC Game Changer award in 2022. More recently, it was selected for the 2024 Startups 100 Index campaign.
Amy Irvine, who is handling communications for the Startups 100 launch, was obliged to remove Sook from its listing.
“In today’s unpredictable business landscape, things can move incredibly quickly, and we’re sorry not to have updated our pre-prepared press release in time to capture the latest changes for Sook,” Amy told the Cambridge Independent.
“I can confirm that Sook ceased operations on December 31 2023, two months after the 2024 Startups 100 Index campaign was finalised. Its closure coincides with a significant decline in venture capital funding in 2023, which impacted many businesses in various sectors.
“We have covered this news ourselves this week with an article reflecting on Sook’s growth and journey and John’s vision as a founder, and how Sook’s closure underscores the realities that even strong concepts can be affected by external circumstances.
“For many entrepreneurs, failure can be the springboard to later, greater success, and we have no doubt that John will be back with another bold and brilliant idea to achieve his goal of revitalising the UK high street.”
A spokesperson for John said he is “unavailable until after the liquidation process is complete”.
