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River Island is reportedly looking to open a number of new stores across the UK and Ireland later this year after the high street chain saw a return to profit following a restructuring last year, chief executive Ben Lewis told This is Money.
According to the retailer’s latest financial statement, it delivered a pre-tax profit of £11.6m for 2025, spelling a 109% jump year-on-year from a loss of £124.3m in 2024.
Gross profits likewise increased to £94.3m, up 94.3% from £37m the year prior. This was said to be supported by improved product profitability, favourable sales mix and cost efficiencies.
News comes after River Island avoided administration last August by proposing a restructuring, which was backed by 80% of overall creditors.
As part of this restructuring, River Island closed 33 of its stores, which it described as “no longer where the group’s customers shop.” Later that August, the retailer had secured rent reductions of between 25% and 75% over a 36-month period for 38 stores classified as B1 to B4 in its UK portfolio.
Lewis told This is Money: “2025 was a year of significant progress and transformation for River Island. We took decisive action to strengthen the business, improve profitability and create a more sustainable platform for future growth.
“The turnaround we have delivered is the result of a huge amount of hard work across the business. We improved product profitability, simplified the organisation, reduced costs and strengthened our operating model.”
He added: “While there is still more to do, these results demonstrate that our transformation plan is working and that River Island is moving forward from a much stronger position.”
The retailer’s financial reports for 2024 revealed a significant downturn prior to the August restructuring approval. Operating losses for the 52-week period ending 28 December 2024 surged by 86.3% year-on-year, reaching £65.3m. Additionally, River Island’s EBITDA loss saw a dramatic increase of 186.6%, rising from £17.2m in 2023 to £49.3m in 2024.
