Debenhams has revealed the list of 22 stores which will be closing next year after it was placed into administration – its Romford branch spared.
The retailer’s lenders seized control of the company on April 9 which, expected to trigger store closures and job losses, had cast doubt on the Market Place branch’s future.
On Friday (April 22) the high street giant announced the following stores would be shutting:
- Altrincham
- Ashford
- Birmingham Fort
- Canterbury
- Chatham
- Eastbourne
- Folkestone
- Great Yarmouth
- Guildford
- Kirkcaldy
- Orpington
- Slough
- Southport
- Southsea
- Staines
- Stockton
- Walton
- Wandsworth
- Welwyn Garden City
- Wimbledon
- Witney
- Wolverhampton
Terry Duddy, executive chairman of Debenhams, said: “The issues facing the UK high street are very well known.
“Debenhams has a clear strategy and a bright future, but in order for the business to prosper, we need to restructure the group’s store portfolio and its balance sheet, which are not appropriate for today’s much changed retail environment.
“Our priority is to save as many stores and as many jobs as we can, while making the business fit for the future.”
Debenhams’ shareholders were wiped out after the company was placed into pre-pack administration earlier this month.
Its new owner is a consortium of banks and hedge funds who are launching the major store-closure programme via an insolvency process known as a company voluntary arrangement (CVA).
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