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Thread: Debenhams

  1. #1
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    Debenhams

    Well, it looks as if the end has finally arrived. I feel pretty sad about that because I used to work for them in my youth. I was Saturday boy, general dogsbody and then moved onto the heady heights of the loading bay. I spent my weekends and holidays working hard, failing to chat up all the women and having a laugh. One summer they paid me to go down to Brighton to work on the loading bay stocking the brand new store. Three weeks full time, a ropey hotel room, a weekly £75 bonus and I felt like a king. The money I earned at Debenhams bought me my first sh*tty banger of a car, my beer, my cricket kit and helped me through university. I never had to rely on my parents for anything beyond the age of 16 because of Debenhams, and I learnt a lot about people and the world of work.

    I know there won’t be many folks mourning its passing given what it became in more recent years, but I am today. Cheers Debenhams, I definitely owe you more than one.

  2. #2
    First House of Fraser, then Arcadia and now Debenhams, one could be forgiven for thinking maybe just maybe our governments have got it wrong in the way they seem to favour huge online sellers, it must be time to level the playing field.

  3. #3
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    Agree, I'm sad its going...bit more disorganised in places than John Lewis but it wasn't a bad place to shop. The march of Amazon is relentless and covid lockdown has only given it a further unfair advantage this year.

    On a similar theme, I just watched this video that made me feel very sorry for the couple...14-years and a successful business down the pan...

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-55124539

  4. #4
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Wasn't House of Fraser saved by Sports Direct?

  5. #5
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    It is a shame, particularly for all the people who will lose their jobs. It has been coming however and the business failed to adequately deliver the 'Amazon experience' in its ecommerce experience (namely abundance of products, ease of ordering, ease (same day) delivery, dashboard to manage orders and so on. The challenge for the bricks and mortar retailers is that once people have tried the online experience (and lockdowns will have been the catalyst for more folks to do so) the user experience and convenience/speed of transacting means that unless it is for special purchases then online will become the default.

  6. #6
    Grand Master Dave+63's Avatar
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    I heard today that Mike Ashley was in negotiations to save Debenhams (who were on theirs way out months ago) but pulled out due to the Arcadia collapse, as Arcadia had most of the concessions within Debenhams.

    I’ve a feeling that Mike Ashley (who has been mentioned wrt Arcadia too) may end up with both businesses for a pittance as they have a definite synergy and, bought cheaply enough, have potential mileage in them yet.

  7. #7
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    The local Debenhams in Leicester has had a big refit last year then closed when covid struck and never reopened to be fair I think Debenhams has been starved of cash for years every one I have visited for a long time looked very run down and held together with gaffer tape

  8. #8
    Master PhilipK's Avatar
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    There's an old saying in business - if you don't give your customers what they want, somebody else will.

    Amazon, whatever about their tax situation, gives its customers what they want in spades - huge range, very competitive prices, same day delivery, great customer service, all the convenience and safeguards of on-line shopping, etc, etc

    Debenhams, on the other hand, is a depressing place to shop, offering a small range of expensive stuff sold by (mostly) mostly uninformed and disinterested staff.

    Covid may be hastening its demise, but there was little doubt where Debenhams, and others of their ilk, were headed.

    It's now up to a new generation of entrepreneurs to identify gaps in the market. Don't forget that it wasn't than long ago that Amazon was a new start-up selling only books!

  9. #9
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    very sad, my nana worked there for 30 years, she would be turning in the proverbial!

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by PhilipK View Post
    Amazon, whatever about their tax situation...
    Schoolznhospitalz! Will no one think of the schoolznhospitalz?

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by adrianw View Post
    First House of Fraser, then Arcadia and now Debenhams, one could be forgiven for thinking maybe just maybe our governments have got it wrong in the way they seem to favour huge online sellers, it must be time to level the playing field.
    It's nothing to do with that. Debenhams just haven't moved with the times or fashion. M&S suffered the same as did BHS.
    Whenever I've gone into Debenhams it's just a mish mash of in store concessions (quiet a lot I've never heard of) and no clear layout.
    How come Primark are so successful? if it supposed to be a level playing field?
    Obviously, Covid hasn't helped.

  12. #12
    Grand Master RustyBin5's Avatar
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    Debenhams

    Is it overstating it to say this is the absolute end of the high street - and more than that is it the end of the shopping malls? Debenhams, topshop, burtons, Perkins. By Easter do we add River Island, Next, Argos, Waterstones?

    Sad days indeed for a huge number of workers with Christmas looming.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by PhilipK View Post
    There's an old saying in business - if you don't give your customers what they want, somebody else will.

    Amazon, whatever about their tax situation, gives its customers what they want in spades - huge range, very competitive prices, same day delivery, great customer service, all the convenience and safeguards of on-line shopping, etc, etc

    Debenhams, on the other hand, is a depressing place to shop, offering a small range of expensive stuff sold by (mostly) mostly uninformed and disinterested staff.


    A high street presence can never compete with internet-based operations. You make it sound like they can, and that failure to do so - is their fault.

    Half the 'shoppers' probably only use the high street outlets as a 'try before buy on internet' resource. See it all the time with motorcycle gear stockists. Punter comes in, tries on selection of helmets, sucks his teeth and mumbles "I'll think about it and come back to you." Ordered online within the hour.

  14. #14
    Master Alansmithee's Avatar
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    I'm a bit baffled by the comments about Amazon - have any of you ever looked at the clothes sections on Amazon?


    They were done for by more nimble direct competitors.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by RustyBin5 View Post
    Is it overstating it to say this is the absolute end of the high street - and more than that is it the end of the shopping malls? Debenhams, topshop, burtons, Perkins. By Easter do we add River Island, Next, Argos, Waterstones?

    Sad days indeed for a huge number of workers with Christmas looming.
    Not necessarily. Sainsburys own Argos and don't see them selling it yet and Waterstones is turning over a profit

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by blackal View Post
    A high street presence can never compete with internet-based operations. You make it sound like they can, and that failure to do so - is their fault.
    If a high street presence can never compete with internet-based operations, then yes, it is totally the fault of those businesses who chose to continue trading on the high street. Things constantly change - those business who are unable to, or choose not to, deal with that change are doomed to failure.

    In the meantime, Primark seem to do very well on the high street, with no internet presence.

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by RustyBin5 View Post
    Is it overstating it to say this is the absolute end of the high street - and more than that is it the end of the shopping malls? Debenhams, topshop, burtons, Perkins. By Easter do we add River Island, Next, Argos, Waterstones?

    Sad days indeed for a huge number of workers with Christmas looming.
    Said for all the workers. I wonder what will happen to all this real estate in city centres with shops closing on the street and big malls?

  18. #18
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    The mad thing is that Christmas shopping in physical shops has been reduced down to 4 weeks which means higher footfall all crushed together, so when Debenhams the open the doors they will now be rammed full of people, standing shoulder to shoulder grabbing items reduced by 70%, whilst getting a good dose of the unmentionable virus thingy at the same time. Possibly giving it to an elderly member of staff who is about to lose their job for Christmas. A very sad state of affairs for far too many people I fear.

  19. #19
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    I'm not sure Debenhams could have adapted to a Primark model even if they tried. Two very different business models?

  20. #20
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    Primark, Zara, Uniqlo, Wilkos all seem to manage it

    It won’t be long before Curry’s, Smiths, Waterstones and a plethora of other old timer shops go too

    Shame as I worked in Owen Owen which was taken over by Alders which went bust and was then bought by Debenhams which my wife worked in for 10 odd years, to be fair it was a naff store then too (Ilford)

    Survival of the fittest now and there’s a lot of unfit high street stores resisting on their laurels and 85 year old clients


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  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by subseastu View Post
    Said for all the workers. I wonder what will happen to all this real estate in city centres with shops closing on the street and big malls?
    Pretty much sums up my feelings, the collapse of traditional retail heavyweights will have consequences and I can’t see the outcome being very appealing. Online shopping has killed bricks and mortar shops and the bigger they come the harder they fall. Like most men who are over 55 I don’t enjoy shopping but I hate the idea of the shops not existing and that’s the prospect we face.

    As for Debenhams, I felt they were expensive but could usually be relied upon to have what I was looking for, as a typical male shopper my aim was to get what I’d gone to buy and spend as little time as possible in the store. However, they served another useful purpose, their stores had a toilet and therefore provided a necessary service that’s all too lacking in many big towns.

    Ironically, my local Debenhams (Wakefield) was the focal point of a new shopping centre built approx 10 years ago that effectively killed the rest of the town centre. I can see the centre becoming a retail white elephant and adding further to the decline of the town.

    Like the folks who bemoan the loss of their local pub despite the fact that they visited twice / year, the on-line shoppers will miss the bricks and mortar stores when it’s too late.

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by PhilipK View Post
    If a high street presence can never compete with internet-based operations, then yes, it is totally the fault of those businesses who chose to continue trading on the high street. Things constantly change - those business who are unable to, or choose not to, deal with that change are doomed to failure.

    In the meantime, Primark seem to do very well on the high street, with no internet presence.
    Probably buoyed up by the non-credit card users.
    Last edited by blackal; 1st December 2020 at 21:07.

  23. #23
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    I think it’s sad. Debenhams reminds me of growing up and of my mum; being dragged around there by her; going to the after Christmas sales, being entirely dressed from head to foot in Debenhams clothes. Buying dad’s birthday aftershave gift set from there, buying my school suit and first dinner suit as a 6th former. All our stuff at home came from there, even the curtains. It was *the* place to shop in the 90’s.

    Just got some old decorations down from the loft to sort through, and found the Christmas tablecloth and napkins that I remember us using every Christmas since the 90’s... of course, all with Debenhams labels; still like new and going strong.

    I’ll miss it.

  24. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by ach5 View Post
    I think it’s sad. Debenhams reminds me of growing up and of my mum; being dragged around there by her; going to the after Christmas sales, being entirely dressed from head to foot in Debenhams clothes. Buying dad’s birthday aftershave gift set from there, buying my school suit and first dinner suit as a 6th former. All our stuff at home came from there, even the curtains. It was *the* place to shop in the 90’s.

    Just got some old decorations down from the loft to sort through, and found the Christmas tablecloth and napkins that I remember us using every Christmas since the 90’s... of course, all with Debenhams labels; still like new and going strong.

    I’ll miss it.
    And that is precisely the problem


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  25. #25
    One of my favorite coats is a leather I bought at Debenhams over 20 years ago, I liked shopping there back in the day.

    Me and my wife stopped shopping in our city center years ago because wondering around in the City center was no longer a pleasant experience, nothing to do with covid, price etc etc.

  26. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by subseastu View Post
    Said for all the workers. I wonder what will happen to all this real estate in city centres with shops closing on the street and big malls?
    The impact of an "Anchor Store" closing in a shopping centre/mall - has been well documented in the USA, with malls dropping below 'criticality' and never recovering.

    Youtube has many interesting (but depressing) tours of derelict malls in USA.

  27. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave+63 View Post
    I heard today that Mike Ashley was in negotiations to save Debenhams (who were on theirs way out months ago) but pulled out due to the Arcadia collapse, as Arcadia had most of the concessions within Debenhams.

    I’ve a feeling that Mike Ashley (who has been mentioned wrt Arcadia too) may end up with both businesses for a pittance as they have a definite synergy and, bought cheaply enough, have potential mileage in them yet.

    I thought it was JD Sports who were trying to put a deal together but then went cool with the Arcadia collapse.

  28. #28
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    These big stores killed off thousands of small shops and now online shopping is killing them. This is because we the consumer buy in a way that suits us the best.

    There are no villains in this, it is just the never ending MO of purchasing. It has always been thus.

  29. #29
    Grand Master RustyBin5's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by hilly10 View Post
    I thought it was JD Sports who were trying to put a deal together but then went cool with the Arcadia collapse.
    Mike Ashley is JD Sports

  30. #30
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    No he isn't, he just owns a bit of them I think.

  31. #31
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bondurant View Post
    No he isn't, he just owns a bit of them I think.
    I believe that is true. Ashley offered a £50m loan to try to save Arcadia. But sounds more like marketing than a serious proposition to me.

  32. #32
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    As others have said, aside from the misery for those losing their jobs what will happen to the town centre locations, Debenhams tend to be large multi floor establishments. I can’t see anyone taking these places on.

    Up here in “the north” you could be dropped into any town centre and all the shops would be the same. There are some jewels like Harrogate, York and Beverley around us but the rest of the northern towns are full of cash converters, vape shops, charity shops and very little in the way of anything else. Even Meadowhall which was guilty of sucking out the life of the city centre has now become one big changing room for buyers who then go home and log onto Assos.

    The only way forward for town centres now to avoid them being abandoned streets with letting boards is to go back to some sort of residential arrangements much like they were a few hundred years ago

    I can’t see a way forward for them as shop windows.

  33. #33
    Quote Originally Posted by Rod View Post
    Whenever I've gone into Debenhams it's just a mish mash of in store concessions (quiet a lot I've never heard of) and no clear layout.
    I usually buy coats etc for my children from Debenhams and usually have a look in the men’s section for any good deals for me. The children’s section has been in decline this year where I was failing to find anything whereas in previous years it was guaranteed.

    The men’s section is like a tidy jumble sale and I give up looking. I remember there was a number of years I did not wear jeans and decided to buy some. I did not know what I wanted but whatever I looked at, it was not right. Walking around aimlessly I wondered into Debenhams and thinking why am I in here when the designer shops did not have anything good. But I spot some Levi’s jeans - only one pair and on sale. There were 501 type but with a slimmer cut, different styled pockets and a different style seam on the leg. Very unusual but nice. Debenhams saved me that day but I do not think I have purchased anything for myself from their since. I did always visit but the range never changed.

    Growing up I remember visiting Woolworths, C&A, BHS and Owen Owen etc. All sadly gone. The high street will be click and collect shops, pound shops and Greggs.

  34. #34
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    Quote Originally Posted by walkerwek1958 View Post
    Ironically, my local Debenhams (Wakefield) was the focal point of a new shopping centre built approx 10 years ago that effectively killed the rest of the town centre. I can see the centre becoming a retail white elephant and adding further to the decline of the town.

    Like the folks who bemoan the loss of their local pub despite the fact that they visited twice / year, the on-line shoppers will miss the bricks and mortar stores when it’s too late.
    Exactly the same happened in Derby about 15 years ago. The Intu centre as it’s called now has ripped the rest of the city centre apart. Small areas mainly what is now called the cathedral quarter have only started to recover in the last few years.

    Debenhams in the intu is three floors in a prime location on one corner with M&S of a similar size on the other. Debenhams moved into it from a 1930’s Art Deco building at the other end of town which has just been knocked down.

    God knows how and who will fill the shop in the intu centre. M&S is also a creaking gate which is only a matter of time before that disappears in its current disguise.

    You do wonder why these shopping centres were built in the first place because the decline of the high st started before a lot of them were built.

    Also the old three storey BHS building has remained empty since they went belly up.


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  35. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by J3w3ll3r View Post
    Primark, Zara, Uniqlo, Wilkos all seem to manage it

    It won’t be long before Curry’s, Smiths, Waterstones and a plethora of other old timer shops go too

    Shame as I worked in Owen Owen which was taken over by Alders which went bust and was then bought by Debenhams which my wife worked in for 10 odd years, to be fair it was a naff store then too (Ilford)

    Survival of the fittest now and there’s a lot of unfit high street stores resisting on their laurels and 85 year old clients


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    Why do people keep mentioning Waterstones? They are turning profit, so I presume they are just used as an example of a random high street shop?

    FWIW I think the specialist shops will be mostly fine. Waterstones do books. They do them well. They hold an immense stock and they are almost always my first stop for a new book. They used to be eye-wateringly expensive (especially with the obvious internet comparisons) but the last couple of new release hardbacks I have bought have been reduced to a tenner and that seems to be a common theme, so I'm more than happy to shop there and they still turn a profit. I'll keep returning. The shop is always busy when I go in.

    These huge department stores which want to stock everything and anything are in big trouble. Up to the 1990's that served them very well, people looking for convenience could go out and shop "under one roof". Unfortunately they can do that now - under their own roof, in their pj's if they wish. The big stores deemed Too Big to Fail are now failing in their dozens, pushed into vastly concession driven structures (Beales, BHS, Debenhams...) which take them away from their roots (one shop owned by one company selling variety) and turns them into mini shopping malls. I had to buy some Tiffany perfume from Debenhams a few weeks ago, it was a horrible experience I'm afraid to say, every kiosk was manned by staff pushing their own brand, I almost felt guilty asking directions to another booth.

    This might sound old fashioned, but the only way forward for the high street now is to focus on lots more shops of much MUCH smaller size. That will mean concessions, rate relief, business grants and, importantly, motivation for the current generation to get off their computers and get into town. We are a nation of shopkeepers, after all.

    The high street is NOT dead. It's not even dying. The idiots people suggesting that is is are the ones who are happy for it to do so, but I assure you shopping isn't just a necessity, it is a national pastime! I'm more than happy to mooch around a town or city centre spending money, but I really don't get any pleasure from spending either time or money in big, faceless warehouses-with-clothes-rails like the subject of this thread.

    Sorry, there's my 2pence. Opinionated soul that I am.

  36. #36
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    A lot of the shops in the Bullring will be sweating as the big Debenhams store at the end, tends to bring footfall through the centre.

  37. #37
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    The only thing that really matters to the great majority is price. That’s why Primark does so well and that’s why McDonalds is so popular. There’s not even enough people that value quality and service to make John Lewis turn much of a profit this year.

    Curry’s, despite having some of the worst customer service and clueless staff seems to have found the knack of selling enough items at Internet prices to compete in the retail parks. Despite it being lauded as a chain with the best staff and customer service, I’d bet Richer Sounds only does well because they are as cheap as Amazon.

  38. #38
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    Quote Originally Posted by PhilipK View Post
    There's an old saying in business - if you don't give your customers what they want, somebody else will.

    Amazon, whatever about their tax situation, gives its customers what they want in spades - huge range, very competitive prices, same day delivery, great customer service, all the convenience and safeguards of on-line shopping, etc, etc

    Debenhams, on the other hand, is a depressing place to shop, offering a small range of expensive stuff sold by (mostly) mostly uninformed and disinterested staff.

    Covid may be hastening its demise, but there was little doubt where Debenhams, and others of their ilk, were headed.

    It's now up to a new generation of entrepreneurs to identify gaps in the market. Don't forget that it wasn't than long ago that Amazon was a new start-up selling only books!
    There's a strong argument that their tax situation is how they're able to offer 'what the customer wants'.

    I try not to shop with them now.

    Someone has to pay for the current shotshow and it should be the business making the most money from it.

    I won't comment on the government's thinking around this as politics aren't allowed in G&D.

    My son has worked in a popular independent toy shop for the last few years, but the latest lockdown has killed their business dead and it has closed forever.

    November is the month toy shops make their money for the whole year. They have done well in previous years, but this lockdown at a few days notice in their peak selling time was impossible to cope with.

    Small independents are certainly not safe from the effects of policies that favour only multinational giants who avoid paying any tax.

    Amazon know they are sailing close to the wind, it's why they keep crowing about how wonderful their public works are.

    Not to mention staff treatment that would make Sports Direct blush...

    M

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    Last edited by snowman; 1st December 2020 at 22:46.
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  39. #39
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    Quote Originally Posted by Boss13 View Post
    I believe that is true. Ashley offered a £50m loan to try to save Arcadia. But sounds more like marketing than a serious proposition to me.
    Arcadia were quoted as saying, "We could raise that amount in 5 minutes".

  40. #40
    Quote Originally Posted by ryanb741 View Post
    It is a shame, particularly for all the people who will lose their jobs. It has been coming however and the business failed to adequately deliver the 'Amazon experience' in its ecommerce experience (namely abundance of products, ease of ordering, ease (same day) delivery, dashboard to manage orders and so on. The challenge for the bricks and mortar retailers is that once people have tried the online experience (and lockdowns will have been the catalyst for more folks to do so) the user experience and convenience/speed of transacting means that unless it is for special purchases then online will become the default.
    It's impossible to recreate the Amazon experience for any legacy retailer. Amazon has the cheapest cost of capital of any company in history and they haven't needed to make a profit for decades. Cheap capital and shareholders that don't want a profit are impossible to compete with. The high streets have already been gutted by a retail model that has not actually proven itself commercially successful yet. Yes customers love it, but it has not paid for itself yet. Not even close. It lost almost €1Bn in Europe last year, even including its hugely profitable cloud arm.

    Sorry to be political, but the government is a fault entirely. John Lewis pay more tax on their Oxford Street store than amazon pay in the whole of the UK.

    When John Lewis goes to the wall, it won't because they didn't change fast enough, they have the highest online sales percentage of any bricks and mortar retailer in the world, it'll be because the government made it happen.

    As for Arcadia, I feel for the team. I have a lot of friends there. I wish Green wasn't immune from the fall out though, he really didn't get the change in the market. Since we're in G&D I can't describe my thoughts of him.

    When Amazon and the other platforms own the entire shopping and fulfilment experience then consumers lose. In the first covid wave the prices on amazon were disgusting. Recently I've noticed a big mark up on amazon prime prices. Their market position allows them to be price makers and charge what they want. Customers are now conditioned to believe it's the cheapest, but it rarely is these days.

  41. #41
    In normal times I probably shop more in Spain than the UK, it must be a culture thing, how come store chains like El Corte Inglés are so successful, maybe we just don’t want to go shopping in the UK any more.

  42. #42
    I suspect places that get the right balance between physical stores and online presence who sell something distinct from the rest.

    I shopped in Debenhams years ago, but they always felt like a low end John Lewis- but not a budget offering.

    I think more clothing brands and sellers are going to suffer more. Fast fashion is becoming less of a thing both ethically and financially, and there are a lot of brands (e.g. fat face, joules, white stuff) which have simultaneously massively expanded their operations in the past few decades while also becoming less and less diverse in their offerings compared to each other/everyone else.

  43. #43
    Master
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    Debenhams

    Quote Originally Posted by Mick P View Post
    These big stores killed off thousands of small shops and now online shopping is killing them. This is because we the consumer buy in a way that suits us the best.

    There are no villains in this, it is just the never ending MO of purchasing. It has always been thus.
    Absolutely, if we we’re genuinely sad about these stores closing we’’d have used them more!

    I remember everyone moaning that butchers and grocers were closing. But did they use them, clearly not.

    I haven’’t been in a Debenhams for years but I’d imagine it’s full of throw away fashion, made from polyester.

    Let’’s hope, rents are reduced, rates cut and a new breed entrepreneur shop keepers can do something exciting!
    Last edited by Rodder; 1st December 2020 at 22:49.

  44. #44
    As an ex dept manager for them the writing has indeed been on the wall for many years. Some really good people work in many departments across many stores in the north. I feel so sorry for these "teams" as some of them truly are great at what they do. I am afraid though that the upper echelons of regional management and above failed to move the business forward effectively enough.
    Some really odious individuals, and of course some good people at that level, but the brash, bullshitty noisy ones were the ones listened to most.
    Such a shame

    Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

  45. #45
    Master jukeboxs's Avatar
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    Totally agree, those of us who failed these stores can't complain at these stores failing (I for one won't miss Debenhams, but I do feel sorry for the staff, especially those on the shop floor). I avoid city centre high streets and shopping malls, a completely soulless experience. I feel more hopeful for town high streets (I use mine); more individual, more character. [Fatman Green should do the right thing and plug the pension deficit with a small share of the £1.2bn he ripped out of the business, but he won't.]

  46. #46
    Grand Master Seamaster73's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by blackal View Post
    The impact of an "Anchor Store" closing in a shopping centre/mall - has been well documented in the USA, with malls dropping below 'criticality' and never recovering. Youtube has many interesting (but depressing) tours of derelict malls in USA.
    I read recently that the iconic Monroeville Mall near Pittsburgh, star of Dawn of the Dead, is in serious trouble.

  47. #47
    Master
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    The world moved on, they did not. Awful shopping experience that remained the same for far too long & never refreshed itself.

    I won’t miss the shop at all, but feel for those without jobs as a result of it all through these tricky times.

    Covid may have increased the speed of demise, but they have had years to work on improving their offer & experience.

    My fear is how high streets will all start turning to pound lands, betting shops and spice taking vagrants. My wife went on a secondment in Aldershot & the photos of the town shocked me massively.


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  48. #48
    Master j0hnbarker's Avatar
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    I keep reading about the Amazon experience.

    Beyond a dull website interface and dubious tax arrangements, can someone tell me what is so great?

    Is the bottom line everything to everyone?

  49. #49
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by j0hnbarker View Post
    I keep reading about the Amazon experience.

    Beyond a dull website interface and dubious tax arrangements, can someone tell me what is so great?

    Is the bottom line everything to everyone?
    The prices and the customer service. There's the odd exception, but generally it's the cheapest place to purchase from and that counts for about 90% of the success. Add to this same day or next day delivery and a returns process that is as easy as clicking one button and taking your item to a post office. You even get the money refunded as soon as the post office has scanned the item prior to them receiving it back.

    I'm not sure what more you'd want from a 'website experience' other than easily find the product, read some customer reviews and click 'buy'?

    The tax thing I agree with...and the fact that the system should allow no individual to accumulate $131bn.

  50. #50
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mj2k View Post
    The world moved on, they did not. Awful shopping experience that remained the same for far too long & never refreshed itself.
    I agree with this. They just failed to move with the times. When I think of Debenhams and House of Fraser, the first thing that comes to mind is shopping in a 1980s department store with creaky uneven floorboards. Whilst it takes me back to my childhood and I have the association of great times going there then going to John Menzies to buy my Commodore 64 games, it's certainly no way to keep your business running successfully 3 decades later.

    The next High St shop to stuggle will be Gap. No idea how that place manages to keep its London presence going. I reckon it will be online only soon. In addition to the huge vacant lot that was Debenhams, that's two more large Oxford Street premesis that will be empty.

    Also...WH Smith...how does that place stay in business?! It's mocked online for it's 1980s shopping experience and tatty interiors, its core business is an outdated product line (stationary) in a digital wold and it sells stuff at the highest price you can find. Who on earth enjoys shopping here...



    https://twitter.com/WHS_Carpet
    Last edited by Christian; 2nd December 2020 at 11:02.

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