River Island

River Island to shut 33 stores with hundreds of jobs at risk

River Island is reportedly planning to shutter 33 shops as part of a restructuring plan that would see hundreds of jobs at risk, Sky News has reported.   The family-owned group, which currently operates around 230 stores, confirmed the proposals on Friday (20 June) following reports that it was working…

Read More »

River Island owners prepare rescue plan amid tough market conditions

High street fashion brand River Island has reportedly appointed advisers from PwC to draft a restructuring plan amid tough trading conditions, which could result in store closures and job losses, according to Sky News.  Sources revealed to the outlet that although no definitive decisions have been made about the company’s…

Read More »

Northern Ireland’s Abbey Centre sold to new owner for £59m

Abbey Centre in Northern Ireland has been sold by NewRiver to The Herbert Group of Companies in an off market deal for £58.8m.  The 320,000 sq ft shopping centre, located six miles north of Belfast City Centre in Newtownabbey, houses over 70 shops and has a “strong” convenience offer, together…

Read More »

Today’s news in brief-22/4/25

Marks & Spencer has apologised to customers after a technical glitch disrupted contactless payments and click-and-collect services over the Bank Holiday weekend. Shoppers reported frustration at being unable to complete purchases, with some forced to abandon full trolleys. The issue also affected M&S’s email and chat systems, preventing advance customer…

Read More »

Matalan secures £25m in funding for store and digital transformation

Matalan has announced that it has secured an additional £25m of funding from its anchor investors Invesco, Tresidor, Man Group and Napier Park. The retailer stated that the funding will be used to accelerate investment to support Matalan’s multi-year business transformation plan and the delivery of its strategy. This will…

Read More »

Today’s news in brief-10/3/25

WH Smith is nearing a decision on the sale of its high street business, with two bidders, Alteri Investors and Modello Capital, remaining in the race. The retailer, which has seen its Travel business outperform high street outlets, confirmed in January it was exploring strategic options, including a potential sale.…

Read More »

Matalan appoints former N-Brown executive as CCO

Matalan has announced the appointment of ex-N Brown chief executive Sarah Welsh as its new chief product, brand and commercial officer. Welsh brings 30 years of retail experience and has been N-Brown’s CEO for five years. During her tenure she was credited for transforming the group’s traditional catalogue offer to…

Read More »

Bershka and Pull&Bear to open at Glasgow’s Silverburn

Bershka and Pull&Bear have selected retail and leisure destination Silverburn to open their first Glasgow stores. Bershka will take the current Zara space, which will open a much larger store in the former Debenhams unit, as announced last year. Pull&Bear is taking the former Topshop store, between Mango and River…

Read More »

Eldon Square appoints new centre director

Eldon Square, the shopping and leisure destination in Newcastle, has appointed Helen Cowie as centre director. As the investment programme in Eldon Square continues with several arrivals set to open this year including Next, River Island, Flight Club and Freight Island, it said Cowie will bring over 30 years of…

Read More »

Stradivarius to open new store at Metrocentre

Stradivarius has signed to open a new store at Metrocentre, marking the brand’s first location in the North East. Stradivarius will open an almost 10,000 sq ft space in lower Red Mall this summer, just along the mall from Zara. With an extensive range of trend-driven apparel and accessories, the…

Read More »