Debenhams store CLOSURES: Clothing warehouse SHUT DOWN and 10 stores 'under review'

High street giant Debenhams has put 10 stores ‘under review’, Sergio Bucher, chief executive, revealed today. The shop is also axing one warehouse and several others are at risk of being shut putting 220 jobs at risk. 

Bucher, who took over as chief executive last October, outlined the plans for an “effortless, reliable and fun” Debenhams in the future. 

The department store is set to shut one of three distribution centres and 10 smaller in-house warehouses. 

Alongside those plans there is talk of ‘reviewing’ several stores – Bucher said 10 of the company’s 176 stores were being looked at closely.

In total the overhaul will impact 220 jobs across the UK. 

Sergio Bucher, Chief Executive of Debenhams, said: “Our customers are changing the way they shop and we are changing too.

“Shopping with Debenhams should be effortless, reliable and fun whichever channel our customers use. We will be a destination for “Social Shopping” with mobile the unifying platform for interacting with our customers.

“If we deliver differentiated and distinctive brands, services and experiences both online and in stores, our customers will visit us more frequently and, having simplified our operations to make us more efficient, we will be able to serve them better and make better use of our resources.

“I’d like to thank the executive team and all our colleagues, who made sure that we were able to deliver a great experience for our customers over the peak trading period, and who are now working hard to implement our new strategy.

“This will set Debenhams on course for a successful and profitable future.”

The department store’s half-year pre-tax profits fell by 6.4 per cent to £88m and shares were down by nearly 5 per cent following the announcement. 

 Geoff Scott on Twitter said: “Debenham closing ten stores! I hope Sunderland is not one of them. BHS Mother care possibly Marks and Spencer going there will be nowt left.”

The news comes after Marks and Spencer announced plans proposing shutting down six branches across the UK. 

Marks and Spencer has named six stores it is proposing to close down across the UK; these are the first shops confirmed to be affected after an announcement in November revealed the superstore is to shut 30 stores in total over the next five years.  

The company, famed for its luxury food and quality clothing, currently has 959 stores open across the UK. 

It boasts 304 ‘full line’ stores which stock everything from food to clothing, 615 food-only stores and 40 outlets.

The six M&S branches affected include: :

•         Monks Cross
•         Portsmouth
•         Slough
•         Warrington
•         Wokingham
•         Worksop