Debenhams could be returning to the UK high street three years after the brand was bought out of administration.
The high street department store chain was bought by Boohoo back in 2022, and this week, the company announced that it would be taking on the name and will be known as the Debenhams Group going forward. As well as the new name, the firm says it is rolling out the operating model at Debenhams across the wider business, using the overhaul as a “blueprint for the wider turnaround of the group” as the Debenhams brand is now a “majority contributor to group profitability”.
The Boohoo brand will continue, as will other fashion brands owned by the group, such as MAN, Karen Millen and PrettyLittleThing. Shareholders will need to formally approve the wider listed company’s name change, with a meeting scheduled for them to vote on the change on March 28.
In a trading update the company said: “Debenhams is back. ..It has been repositioned as Britain’s online department store and is underpinned by a new marketplace led business model. Debenhams is growing rapidly. The business model is stock-lite and capital-lite. It is very profitable and highly cash generative.
“For our consumers, Debenhams is once again becoming their destination of choice. It is an iconic British heritage brand with huge brand awareness and significant consumer trust. For our partners, Debenhams is becoming a partner of choice, providing access to millions of consumers and driving strong growth for those selling on the Debenhams platform. “
Group chief executive Dan Finley – who was promoted to the top job in November 2024 – having previously led the Debenhams brand – said: “I’m super proud of the turnaround of Debenhams. Bought out of administration with no future, no stock, no staff, but here we are three years later with a thriving British business. Debenhams is back. The future is so bright for Debenhams.”
But he said he had “inherited significant challenges” since taking the helm, with Boohoo having struggled amid sliding sales and a high-profile spat with major shareholder Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, which had attempted a boardroom coup. He revealed the group had cut costs in the past year by more than first expected, stripping out £50million, up from the £30million previously announced.
Some jobs have gone as a result of the cost savings, but the group did not disclose how many. In an update yesterday, the group said sales at the firm fell 16% to £1.2billion in the 12 months to February. But revenues at Debenhams jumped to £204.6million, from £186million the previous year.
Debenhams – which had 1234 stores in the UK and employed 12,000 staff – initially collapsed in 2020 after Covid-19 lockdowns hit both the high street and the wider economy. It was first founded in 1778 and eventually rose to be one of the biggest retailers in the UK, with more than 200 large stores across 18 countries. Sadly, Boohoo has confirmed that it has no plans to reopen physical Debenhams stores, although they will be running pop-ups – including a Debenhams “day spa at the Cheltenham Festival this week and a beauty shop on Great Pulteney Street in Soho”
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