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Highland shopping centre set to shut as Debenhams becomes online only retailer


By Calum MacLeod

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Eastgate anchor store Debenhams is set to close as the chain becomes an online only retailer.
Eastgate anchor store Debenhams is set to close as the chain becomes an online only retailer.

The Inverness branch of Debenhams, the anchor store at the city's Eastgate shopping centre, is to permanently close after online retailer Boohoo paid £55 million for the brand.

The Boohoo deal does not include any of Debenhams' stores, stock or financial services and means one of the longest established names in UK retail will now continue as an online presence.

Although a limited number of Debenhams staff may transfer to Boohoo, the vast majority of the chain's 10,000 staff will lose their jobs when the remaining 118 Debenhams stores close.

Administrators FRP Advisory confirmed that Boohoo Group Plc has signed an agreement to buy the Debenhams brand and other business assets including all the in-house brands and websites. This will take full effect following the completion of the current stock liquidation programme, which is continuing online.

Once Debenhams stores are able to reopen, the stock liquidation will continue in stores and is likely to continue for several weeks until the stock liquidation is completed. Once this is done, all the UK stores will then be permanently closed.

Geoff Rowley, joint administrator and partner of FRP Advisory, said: “We are pleased to have secured the future for this great brand, and to have created the opportunity for a new Debenhams-branded business to emerge in a different shape beyond the pandemic.

"I expect that the agreement with Boohoo may provide some job opportunities but we regret that this outcome does not safeguard the jobs of Debenhams’ employees beyond the winding down period. We are very grateful that they have worked tirelessly through this very challenging period and will continue to support the closing down sale. I’d also like to thank the management team, who have worked very hard throughout to protect the business and support us in delivering the best outcome for stakeholders.”

The 242-year-old department store chain has been in administration since last April.

Although Sports Direct founder and House of Fraser owner Mike Ashley made an offer for the business, it was rejected as being too low and the chain began a liquidation process in December after failing to secure a last-minute rescue sale.

A statement released by Boohoo said the deal represented a fantastic opportunity to grow its market and complement its already highly successful online offering.

Debenhams' online platform already receives approximately 300 million website visits annually, putting it among the Top 10 most visited UK retail websites.

Boohoo will rebuild and relaunch the Debenhams platform, probably early next year, allowing the group to develop into new categories such as beauty, sport and homeware.

Debenhams’ own fashion brands will be absorbed into Boohoo’s current portfolio.

Boohoo chief executive John Lyttle commented: “The acquisition of the Debenhams brand is an important development for the group, as we seek to capture incremental growth opportunities arising from the accelerating shift to online retail. We have developed a successful multi-brand direct-to-consumer platform that continues to disrupt the markets that we operate in. The acquisition represents an exciting strategic opportunity to transform our target addressable market through the creation of an online marketplace that leverages Debenhams’ high brand awareness and traffic through the development of beauty and fashion partnerships connecting brands with consumers.”

Executive chairman Mahmud Kamani said: “This is a transformational deal for the group, which allows us to capture the fantastic opportunity as ecommerce continues to grow. Our ambition is to create the UK’s largest marketplace. Our acquisition of the Debenhams brand is strategically significant as it represents a huge step which accelerates our ambition to be a leader, not just in fashion ecommerce, but in new categories including beauty, sport and homeware.”


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