Sports Direct
This coverage focuses on Sports Direct’s activities and position within the UK retail market, detailing store developments, acquisitions, financial results, leadership changes, and strategic initiatives. Reporting examines how the company shapes its sportswear and leisure offering, adapts to market trends, and competes in a dynamic retail environment — providing retail managers and executives with insights into its operations and growth strategies.
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May- 2020 -4 MayCoronavirus
Sports Direct managers say firm asked them to work while on furlough
Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct and House of Fraser firms reportedly asked store managers to work one day a week despite being furloughed. According to The Guardian, store managers allege that they had been asked to come into stores and prepare stock ready to be distributed to its Shirebrook warehouse to…
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Mar- 2020 -27 MarchHigh Street
Mike Ashley apologises for ‘ill-judged’ Covid-19 response
Sports Direct CEO Mike Ashley has penned an open letter apologising for the Fraser Group’s response to the Covid-19 lockdown. It comes after reports that Ashley lobbied the government to keep Sports Direct open and was still asking employees to still come to work at the high street retailer. Newcastle…
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25 MarchSport & Leisure
Government urges Sports Direct and JD Wetherspoon to support employees
Boris Johnson has warned Sports Direct CEO Mike Ashley to “expect consequences” if he does not follow the recent guidelines amid the coronavirus outbreak. Newcastle Central MP Chi Onwurah raised the question during today’s Prime Minister’s Questions after reports that Ashley was still asking employees to still come to work…
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11 MarchHigh Street
Debenhams CVA now free from legal challenges
Embattled department store chain Debenhams has announced that its CVA proposals will be upheld, as the time period for any appeal to be lodged has now expired. The company confirmed that all relevant procedural matters dealt with at the CVA challenge hearing in February have been concluded “in its favour”.…
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2 MarchDepartment Stores
Debenhams denies lenders’ threat to hold up restructuring over rent cuts
Department store chain Debenhams has denied reports of it telling landlords that its lenders may not sign off a “critical debt restructuring” unless they agree to further rent cuts. Debenhams and its lenders agreed to swap £100m of debt for equity in April last year after it entered pre-pack administration,…
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Feb- 2020 -25 FebruaryComment
The changing face of retail in the age of digitisation
Retail: the 2020 snapshot It’s no secret that high street retail in Britain has been struggling for the past decade. Since the collapse of Woolworths in 2009, it has been clear that something, somewhere, has been going very wrong on the Great British high street. In fact, currently it is…
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19 FebruaryHigh Street
Sports Direct ‘partially allowed’ to withhold private documents from FRC
The Court of Appeal has ruled to partially allow Sports Direct’s appeal to overturn a High Court ruling from 2018 which ordered it to submit 40 company documents to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC). It comes after the FRC attempted to gain access to the documents in relation to its…
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6 FebruaryDepartment Stores
PETA buys Frasers Group stake amid anti-fur protests
PETA US has become a shareholder in Frasers Group, the animal rights group has announced. The move is in response to House of Fraser reportedly reversing its pledge to not to sell any fur products. The animal rights activists said that by breaking its previous pledge, the retail group was…
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4 FebruaryClothing & Shoes
Frasers Group acquires stake in Mulberry
Frasers Group has bought a 12.5% stake in luxury fashion brand Mulberry. The Mike Ashley-owned group said the move was a “key strategic priority”, and follows on from previous acquisitions of premium brands. Last November, the former Sports Direct International group rebranded as Frasers Group as part of a “multi-channel…
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Jan- 2020 -30 JanuaryHigh Street
Sports Direct battles order to hand ‘private’ documents to FRC
Sportswear retailer Sports Direct is fighting an order to hand over “private” documents to the UK’s accounting watchdog. According to a report by the Financial Times (FT), the retailer is attempting to overturn a High Court ruling from 2018 which ordered it to submit 40 company documents to the Financial…
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