2000s – 2024
Despite only having expanded the building in 1999, by 2001 the business was relocated further along Smithdown Road to numbers 364–368, which better suited the ever-expanding stock levels.
2002 saw the launch of the eHattons website, which allowed customers to order directly online for the first time.
Norman Hatton died in 2005 aged 87. By then, Hattons was turning over £1 million per year. His son Keith also died during a holiday in Ibiza in 2008. He was just 49.[7] Following the deaths of her father and brother, Christine Hatton took over the running of the company along with present managing director Richard Davies.
The early 2010s saw Hattons move the majority of their stock to a warehouse in Widnes, Cheshire, known as the Hattons Hub; and in January 2016, after 70 years, the store on Smithdown Road was closed for the final time, with all operations moving to the Widnes site on Montague Road. The expansion of the company's online business meant that having stock split over two sites was no longer viable. Further, the Smithdown Road building needed to be brought up to modern standards and the lack of parking outside the store was inconvenient for customers.
The building on Smithdown Road was turned into a Leaf tearoom in September 2019.[8] One of their tables is made from the Hattons signage.
As of 2022, the company turned over £11 millions,[9] down from £17 millions in 2018.
On 8 January 2024, Hatton's Model Railways announced on their social media platforms that they would be closing down.[10] The company cited "changing market conditions" as the reason for their decision, including "dramatically" increased costs for compliance after Brexit, changes in the number and demographics of their customer base, as well as supply chain disruptions.[11] Hattons permanently closed their shop on Sunday 4 February 2024.[5]
In April 2024 it was announced that the Hattons Brand had been bought by Rails of Sheffield, and that the Hattons brand is planned to re-launch online in the future.[12]
