ASOS buys Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge closing 70 shops forever with 2,500 jobs at risk

ASOS has bought Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge from Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group in a deal that is expected to close 70 shops forever.

It comes after Sir Philip Green’s retail empire collapsed into administration in November following “severely impacted” sales.

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ASOS is paying £330million for the brands plus leftover and future stock, with the takeover also including leisurewear range HIIT.

But the deal doesn’t include the physical shops, which means 2,500 retail staff are at risk of redundancy.

ASOS has agreed to take on 300 people within the Arcadia Group business, including buyers and designers.

The websites for Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge will remain open until the deal is completed at the end of the week.

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After this, each brand will move over to the ASOS website and customers trying to access these websites will be redirected to ASOS.

The deal, worth £265million for the brands, a further £30million for existing stock and £35million for stock on order, is expected to be completed by February 4.

As with all clothing companies, which have been deemed non-essential during the coronavirus crisis, the physical stores for these brands are currently closed due to lockdown restrictions.

It’s unclear if shops will open when lockdown is lifted to shift stock.

Websites for each brand remain open for home delivery orders.

Arcadia Group, which was bought by Sir Philip Green for £850million in 2002, also owns Burton, Dorothy Perkins and Wallis.

Last week, Boohoo said it was in exclusive talks to buy all three of these clothing retailers in a move which will also not include any stores.

A deal has yet to be officially confirmed, and it’s not clear how far along the talks are.

Arcadia Group confirmed it had collapsed into administration on November 30, putting 13,000 jobs at risk, after sales dived across the brand due to the coronavirus crisis.

Sir Philip’s stores have also been hit by competition from online retailers such as ASOS and Boohoo.

At the time of falling into administration, Arcadia Group owned 444 stores in the UK and 22 shops internationally.

But administrator Deloitte has already sold off several assets, including the sale of Evans to City Chic Collective for £23million.

In an announcement last month, Arcadia Group also confirmed it would shut another 31 stores, including 21 of the group’s Outfit shops.

Topshop’s flagship Oxford Street store is reportedly being sold off too.

The latest troubles for Arcadia come after the retail empire was saved from the brink of collapse in 2019 by Sir Philip’s wife and registered Arcadia owner Lady Tina Green after she agreed to bail him out.

The move saw Arcadia shut 48 stores and axe 1,000 jobs.

Sir Philip came under fire in April 2020 for asking for taxpayer help to pay wages during the first months of the coronavirus crisis, with critics demanding the millionare businessman should instead “sell one his yachts”.

Nick Beighton, CEO of ASOS, said: “We are extremely proud to be the new owners of the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands.

“The acquisition of these iconic British brands is a hugely exciting moment for ASOS and our customers and will help accelerate our multi-brand platform strategy.

“We have been central to driving their recent growth online and, under our ownership, we will develop them further.”

In mid-August, more than 43,000 retail jobs had been axed since the start of coronavirus lockdown as high streets struggled to survive.

Aldo, Debenhams, Jaeger, Oasis, Peacocks and Warehouse have all collapsed since the pandemic began.

Which shops can stay open during England’s national lockdown? Full list of essential stores.