Debenhams shuts its doors for good: Traditional department store pulls down its shutters at last 28 sites tomorrow after 242 years on Britain’s High Street

• Department store’s remaining 28 stores to shut tomorrow after brand collapsed 
• Closure will mark the end of a 242-year presence in Britain’s towns and cities
• Shoppers can still get discounts of up to 80 per cent in the stores until May 15

Debenhams has confirmed the last of its stores will close for the final time tomorrow as it encouraged shoppers to take advantage of any remaining discounts.      

The department store launched a post-lockdown fire sale before the chain shutters its stores, marking the end of a 242-year presence in Britain’s towns and cities. 

It collapsed at the end of last year, with the closure of all its stores confirmed after Boohoo agreed to only buy its website and brand in a £55 million rescue deal.

Its remaining 28 stores will shut for good on May 15 following its liquidation, with earlier closures throughout May seeing an additional 73 shops close.

Shoppers can still snap up 80 per cent off fashion and home and up to 70 per cent off beauty and fragrance products until tomorrow.        

 Debenhams has today confirmed the last of its stores will close for the final time tomorrow as it encouraged shoppers to take advantage of any remaining discounts

The department store had launched a post-lockdown fire sale before the collapsed chain shutters its stores, marking the end of a 242-year presence in Britain’s towns and cities

Debenhams’ collapse into liquidation ended a 242-year history on the UK high street.

It tumbled over in the same week as Topshop owner Arcadia, with the two failures putting around 23,000 people out of work.

The appalling toll of job losses was on a par with the collapse of Woolworths in 2008, which cost 25,000 jobs.

The closure of the two mega-brands also left a gaping hole in the heart of towns up and down the country, where high streets are already in decline.

The online business of Debenhams, which was founded off Bond Street in London in 1778, and its brands was sold for £55million to online upstart Boohoo in January.  

Although the pandemic sealed its fate, the department store’s woes had built up over decades as it failed to keep up with changing trends and locked itself into long, expensive leases.

Debenhams said the closing down sale was the last chance for customers to say goodbye to their local shop ‘before sadly our stores close for good’.    

Glamour model Gemma Atkinson launches an Ultimo store within Debenhams in Belfast in December 2007

It collapsed at the end of last year, with the closure of all its stores confirmed after Boohoo agreed to only buy its website and brand in a £55 million rescue deal 

Stores have closed steadily throughout the month, with 27 shops in England and Wales shutting on May 2 and 4 and another 21 closing on May 12.  

The chain’s 15 Scottish stores and the flagship on London’s Oxford Street will not reopen. 

A spokesman said: ‘We are now heading into the final days of our closing down sale and this is the very last chance for our customers to take advantage of some incredible deals.

‘With up to 80 per cent off across our remaining stores, customers are urged to shop now while stocks last.

Shoppers are seen charging through the doors of a Debenhams department store on the first day of the sales in 1977

‘Debenhams will close its doors on the high street for the final time in its 242-year history.

‘Our sincere thanks go out to all of our colleagues and customers who have joined us on this journey.

‘We hope to see you all one last time in stores before we say a final goodbye to the UK high street.’    

Which Debenhams stores are closing tomorrow? 

Here is the list of stores which will close on May 15:

• Basildon
• Basingstoke
• Belfast
• Birmingham Bullring
• Brighton
• Bristol
• Bromley
• Cardiff
• Chelmsford
• Cheshire Oaks
• Colchester
• Coventry
• Exeter
• Hanley
• Lakeside
• Leeds White Rose
• Liverpool
• Manchester
• Manchester Trafford
• Meadowhall
• Merry Hill
• Newcastle
• Newry
• Plymouth
• Romford
• Rushmere
• Sheffield
• Swansea

The rise and fall of Debenhams: From modest female outfitters to star-studded fashion launches with Kim Kardashian and Gemma Atkinson… how 242-year-old retail chain met its demise in 2020

By Mark Duell for MailOnline 

Debenhams has been a mainstay on UK high streets for 242 years, but is now set to shut its doors for good.

In 1778 William Clark opened a drapers store on 44 Wigmore Street in central London, selling expensive fabrics, bonnets, gloves and parasols.

The business had a modest start in life, with Mr Clark continuing to run the single store until meeting a potential investor.

William Debenham formed a partnership with the store owner in 1813, pumping funds into the business which then became Clark & Debenham.

Five years later it opened its first store outside the capital, in Cheltenham, and started to dramatically expand.

The business became Clark & Debenham, after William Clark opened a drapers store in 1778 on 44 Wigmore Street in London. Mr Clark had initially opened the shop selling expensive fabrics, bonnets, gloves and parasols, before it was renamed

Penny Lancaster models Ultimo lingerie at Debenhams on Oxford Street in October 2002 (left), while Kim Kardashian launches her ‘True Reflection’ fragrance range at a Debenhams store in London ten years later in May 2012

Shoppers browse for bargains at a Debenhams department store at the start of its sale on December 27, 1977

When Clement Freebody invested in the firm in 1851 it was renamed Debenham & Freebody, and continued to grow by snapping up smaller rivals and expanding its wholesale operations.

Acquisitions continued into the next century and in 1905 Debenhams Ltd was formed.

After the First World War ended, the retailer merged with Marshall & Snellgrove, and in 1920 purchased Knightsbridge retailer Harvey Nichols.

Seven years later the Debenham family exited the business as it was listed on the London Stock exchange.

By 1950, Debenhams was the largest department store group in the UK, owning 84 companies and 110 stores.

In 1985 Debenhams merged to become part of Burton Group, which soon rebranded as Arcadia, before splitting away 13 years later after a period of rapid store expansion and the launch of its first international franchise sites. 

William Debenham (above) formed a partnership with drapers store owner William Clark in 1813, pumping funds into the business which then became Clark & Debenham. Five years later it opened its first store outside the capital, in Cheltenham

Crowds of shoppers pack into the Debenhams on London’s Oxford Street for the post-Christmas sales in December 1982 

Margot Perry, who was first in line, has her hair set while queuing for the start of the Debenhams sale in December 1977

Bargain hunters burst into Debenhams department store at 9am on December 27, 1977 for the start of the winter sales

Following demerger from the Burton Group, Debenhams was listed on the London Stock Exchange until 2003, when it was acquired by Baroness Retail.

Baroness, backed by private equity firms CVC Capital Partners and Texas Pacific Group, started to strip the company’s assets, including a £450 million sale and leaseback of 26 properties and internal cost-cutting.

Three years later, Baroness almost tripled its value as it was floated on the stock market, but the retail group was now weighed down by a portfolio hamstrung with expensive rental agreements.

Nevertheless, Debenhams continued to grow, acquiring nine stores from Roches in the Republic of Ireland in 2007 and Magasin du Nord, the leading department store chain in Denmark, two years after. 

The company also had a partnerships with Michelle Mone’s Ultimo bra company in the 2000s, which led to a series of photoshoots with glamour models inside its stores. 

In 2014, after a decline in company profits, retail tycoon Mike Ashley bought 4.6 per cent of the company’s shares.

People queue outside Debenhams on Oxford Street ahead of the sale opening on December 27, 1978

Sir Ralph Halpern is pictured in Debenhams Oxford Street in November 1985 after his latest acquisition for the Burton Group

A Debenhams store in Manchester is pictured in 1981. In 1985 Debenhams merged to become part of Burton Group, which soon rebranded as Arcadia, before splitting away 13 years later

Businessman Sir Ralph Halpern, pictured at Debenhams Oxford Street with store manager David Elliott, in November 1985

The Debenhams store at Luton in Bedfordshire is pictured in July 1987

He steadily increased his ownership of the department store business, expanding it to 29.7 per cent by 2018.

However, the business had now felt the full effect of difficult high street conditions and sky-high rents, resulting in a £491 million pre-tax loss in 2018.

By April of 2019, the retail giant entered administration and delisted from the stock market.

It undertook a major restructuring, designed to restore it to its former glory, but went into liquidation in 2020. 

Michelle Mone opens the Ultimo lingerie brand’s first concession at Debenhams in Liverpool in 2015

A Debenhams fashion campaign in 2010 featuring Shannon Murray who had been using a wheelchair since her teens

Lingerie designer Aliza Reger (centre) with models to launch the new lingerie department in the Oxford Street store in 2013

Debenhams chief executive Belinda Earl and finance director Matthew Roberts at their store in London’s Oxford Street in 2002 ahead of annual results which saw the company’s profits rise to £153.6million from the previous year’s £146.1million

A person walks past a boarded up Debenhams on Oxford Street on April 16 during the first coronavirus lockdown of the year

The 242-year-old department store chain said its administrators ‘regretfully’ decided to start winding down operations while continuing to seek offers ‘for all or parts of the business’. 

It is understood that the collapse of rescue talks were partly linked to the administration of Arcadia Group, which is the biggest operator of concessions in Debenhams stores. 

Debenhams had already axed 6,500 jobs across its operation due to heavy cost-cutting after it entered administration for the second time in 12 months. 

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