6,000 jobs at risk as major retailer reveals closure plans
House of Fraser has revealed it wants to shut 31 stores across the country as it details its proposals for a company voluntary arrangements (CVA).
If this process is approved it will affect up to 2,000 House of Fraser colleagues and a further 4,000 brand and concession partners.
The Yorkshire stores earmarked for closure include Doncaster, Grimsby, Hull and Skipton. The chain has other stores across Yorkshire in Sheffield, Huddersfield, Leeds, Meadowhall, which have not been included on the closure list.
The retailer said it was “central to the significant restructuring of the business, without which House of Fraser does not have a viable future”.
The proposing of the CVAs follows the announcement made on May 2, of C.banner’s conditional agreement to acquire a 51% stake in House of Fraser Group Ltd and intention to introduce significant new capital.
Currently, House of Fraser operates 59 leased stores across the UK and Ireland and said its property portfolio “is unsustainable in its current form”.
It wants to close 31 stores, leaving the group with 28 stores. As part of this CVA process, the company also proposes to relocate the Baker Street head office and the Granite House office in Glasgow to new locations.
