Topshop shutting all US stores to curb costs

Dean Blake

30th May 2019

Fashion company Arcadia Group is closing all US-based Topshop and Topman stores and transitioning the brand to an online-only model, save for wholesale partners.

The change is expected to dramatically lower the brand’s cost of doing business, with rent, labor costs, and product deliveries lessened significantly.

“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,” Arcadia chief executive Ian Grabiner told CNN in a statement.

“This has been a tough but necessary decision for the business.”

The shift follows the group’s filing for bankruptcy protection in US courts against creditors seeking payment on its listed US$179 million debt, according to CNN.

At least 23 of Arcadia Group’s 566 Topshop, Burton, Dorothy Perkins, Evans, Outfit and other stores in the UK and Ireland will be shut down. According to Business of Fashion, 520 employees are likely to be affected by the closure.

While the number was initially stated to be 23, the Guardian noted this figure could be doubled – resulting in far more jobs lost.

Arcadia will seek approval for the proposed changes during creditor meetings in June.