House of Fraser flagship store has been saved from closure
HOUSE of Fraser’s flagship store on London’s Oxford Street has been saved from closure, it has been announced.
The beleaguered department store group collapsed into administration, before being snapped up by Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct.
The key Oxford Street site, in central London, had been due to close under a House of Fraser company voluntary arrangement (CVA) announced in June.
This is the first deal to be agreed on a House of Fraser store since Sports Direct stepped in earlier this month.
There is no word yet on the fate of the two stores in Wales that were also marked for closure by House of Fraser.
The retail giant operates two stores in Wales, in Cardiff and Cwmbran.
House of Fraser has come come under fire from angry shoppers unable to use their gift cards online or in stores.
Aggravating the situation further, customers have been asked to use their own money to send the gift cards to the House of Fraser head office.
However, customers have yet to receive confirmation that refunds will be issued to the value of the gift card.
Sports Direct has advised that the company has no liability to House of Fraser customers currently in possession of existing gift cards and vouchers.
Phoning the head office of House of Fraser you get a recorded message asking you to email in your query. It is the same on Twitter, with a message: “We are currently experiencing an increased number of customer service enquiries. To help us prioritise and manage these enquiries, we ask that all customers contact us by emailing customerservice@hof.co.uk. Thank you for your ongoing patience at this time.”
The official account of the retail chain also directs people to post unused gift cards to the head office.
On the deal to save the store on Oxford Street James Keany, head of national agency at CBRE, the real estate services and investment firm which is advising Sports Direct on all property-related matters regarding HoF, said: “This deal only happened because all parties realised it was better to keep the store open and fully operational.
“It was a real case of landlord and tenant genuinely working together and at great speed. Everyone was sensible about the terms of the transaction.”
Michael Murray, Sports Direct’s head of elevation, suggested the speed with which the deal was struck showed a commitment to turn around the House of Fraser business.
He said: “We said we would keep as many stores open as possible, and in less than a week we have saved the biggest store.
“Oxford Street was meant to close in January and now it’s safe, which is great news for all parties.
“Everyone must remember it was a busy business and we need landlords, councils and brands to pull together to save House of Fraser on the high street.”
HoF had recently agreed a socalled CVA with landlords to close half of stores, with 6,000 jobs in the firing line.
A release by public relations firm Keith Bishop Associates announcing the deal says it creates jobs on the high street and ensures HoF continues to trade on London’s famous street, but gave no further details.