Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group has announced the closure of all of its US Topshop stores. Earlier this year, it was reported that Arcadia Group was potentially going to cut jobs and close stores in order to explore ways of making the business more efficient in an “exceptionally challenging retail market”.
As part of a rescue plan for the company, 23 stores under the Arcadia Group umbrella, – including Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge – are also set to shut across the UK and Ireland.
High street shops Dorothy Perkins, Burton, Topshop and Topman have been earmarked for closure as part of a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) – a legally binding agreement which allows a company in debt to reach a voluntary agreement with its creditors so that it can repay its debts over tie.
The proposed closure of the Arcadia stores is putting more than 500 jobs at risk. Ian Grabiner, chief executive of Arcadia, says the shutting down of several of the firm’s stores has been a “tough but necessary decision for the business”.
“Against a backdrop of challenging retail headwinds, changing consumer habits and ever-increasing online competition, we have seriously considered all possible strategic options to return the group to a stable financial platform,” Grabiner states. We will ensure all potentially affected colleagues are kept fully informed as we seek approval from our creditors on today’s CVA proposals”.
