Debenhams confirms locations of 52 store closures as part of liquidation

27th April 2021

Elias Jahshan

Debenhams reveals 52 store closure dates as part of liquidation

Department Stores Property

// Debenhams confirms which batch of stores in England & Wales will shut down on May 2, 4 & 8 as part of its liquidation

// In total, 52 stores will shut down for good, leaving 45 to continue trading until May 15.

// Debenhams also confirmed it would briefly reopen its remaining 4 stores in Northern Ireland when lockdown ends on Friday

Debenhams has announced the final closing dates for 52 of its stores less than a fortnight after they reopened with the easing of lockdown restrictions on non-essential retail.

On April 12, the department store chain reopened 97 stores in England and Wales to complete its final closing down sale as part of its liquidation process, and would continue to trade for a limited number of weeks until the stock in the stores is fully cleared.

Debenhams said at the time that the stores would start to close permanently from May 2, with the stock clearance completed and final store closures to take place by May 15.

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This week, the collapsed retailer confirmed the location of stores across England and Wales that would shut down on May 2, May 4 and 8. (The locations are listed at the bottom of this article.)

In total, 52 stores will shut down for good, leaving 45 to continue trading until May 15.

Debenhams went into liquidation in December, after an administration process that started in April failed to secure any buyers to save the department store chain.

About a month later, its brand, ecommerce operations and assets were purchased by Boohoo Group in a £55 million deal. It did not include Debenham’s store estate.

Administrators said at the time that it would continue running closing down sales across Debenhams’ remaining shops – which counted 118 in December – once they were allowed to reopen.

However, last month Debenhams said it would not reopen its 15 stores in Scotland when the country’s lockdown for non-essential retail begins to ease on April 26. This resulted in 647 job losses.

Debenhams’ administrators said the Scottish Government’s lockdown exit timeline did not align with those expected in other parts of the UK, prompting it to make the decision to not reopen its Scottish stores briefly as it has done so in England and Wales.

The department store also plans to briefly reopen its remaining four stores in Northern Ireland, with administrators confirming today that it would do so when the country’s lockdown on non-essential retail is lifted on April 30.

With all of Debenhams’ stores closing down permanently as part of the liquidation and wind-down process, it means up to 12,000 staff would not have their jobs saved.

When it fell into administration in April last year, Debenhams went on to announce significant job cuts and store closures – including its flagship outlet on London’s Oxford Street.

That administration was also the second of its kind that Debenhams had launched within the space of 12 months.

The first administration in 2019 was followed up by CVA that saw it close down scores of stores immediately after the Christmas trading season that year.

Before that first administration, Debenhams operated from around 160 stores across the UK.

Debenhams stores closing on May 2: