The Central London store has been Lillywhites’ best-known location since 1925. Once considered a fine sports store, it was in Lillywhites where George VI shopped for his coronation slippers. But since Sports Direct acquired the brand from Jerónimo Martins for £28.5m in the mid 90s, the sporting emporium went from a glorious department store to a cut-price shop not dissimilar to Sports Direct.
Lillywhites has traded there for almost 100 years, but the lease for the ornate building has now been put on the market as its landlord, Criterion Capital, conducts rent review talks. Property experts have said the lease could be as much as £4 million a year, a staggering sum that would, however, give its occupier a prime spot on Lower Regent Street.
However, regardless of the claim to fame and the location of the store – there still remains the hard truth that department stores are struggling in this current time and most retailers are actually downsizing, as they still fight fiercely with online retailers, with the goliath of all online retailers being Amazon.
