What’s Left Inside Hull’s Abandoned Debenhams? - Urban Exploration

Long before it was a 2000s retail giant, this iconic 180,000 sq ft site was home to Thornton-Varley, a family-run department store that opened all the way back in 1870! It survived a devastating bombing during the Hull Blitz in May 1941 (which temporarily forced them to trade out of the Royal Station Hotel), before rebuilding and eventually becoming part of the Debenhams family in 1953. For generations of people in Hull, this was the place to shop. But when the chain sadly collapsed and closed the store in May 2021, it left a massive, eerie ghost town right in the heart of the city centre.What’s happening now? 🏗️After sitting empty for years, a major £75 million regeneration scheme by the DBG Group is officially underway! Instead of tearing down this massive piece of local history, developers are giving it a total second life. The site is actively being cleared and transformed into 178 modern city-centre apartments.The new layout will feature a massive central glass atrium and will bring vibrant new retail units back to the ground floor to keep Prospect Street buzzing. Did you ever shop here? What are your favourite memories of Hull’s Debenhams? Let me know in the comments! Enjoy! -Mada.Urbex #urbex #kingstonuponhull #abandonedmall #shopping #backrooms #abandoned #onlineretailer #eastyorkshire