Ted Baker to Shut 15 Stores in U. K., Cut 245 Jobs
● Administrators Teneo made the decision to shut lossmaking stores and lay off staff after Ted Baker's U.K. division was placed into administration last month.
LONDON — Ted Baker's administrators plan to shut 11 unprofitable stores and lay off 145 shop floor and head office staff as they unwind the company's U.K. and European business.
Separately, four more Ted Baker stores will shut at the request of their respective landlords, with a further 100 jobs set to be lost. In total, 15 Ted Baker stores will shut with 245 job losses expected across the company.
Joint administrators Benji Dymant and Daniel Smith of Teneo Financial Advisory Ltd. said Monday the unprofitable stores are expected to cease trading by April 19.
Some 120 shop floor jobs will be eliminated in addition to 25 head office roles “as a result of a necessary reduction in central costs,” the administrators said.
They added the 11 stores earmarked for closure as part of the administration process are loss-making and, “have no prospect of being returned to profitability, even with material rent reductions.”
“As such, their closure is believed to be a constructive and necessary step in ensuring the business can deliver a profitable trading performance in the future,” the administrators added.
The 11 unprofitable stores are located in cities such as Birmingham, London and Leeds, and university towns such as Oxford, Cambridge, Nottingham and Exeter.
The further four stores set for closure due to landlords' demands are in London, Manchester and Bicester Village.
Administrators confirmed that Authentic, which owns the intellectual property of Ted Baker, is in the process of finding a new operating partner for the retail and e-commerce businesses in the U.K. and Europe.
Dymant said the store closures “will improve the performance of the business as Authentic continues to progress discussions with potential U.K. and European operating partners for the Ted Baker brand to bring the business back to health.”
According to Authentic, the U.S. arm of Ted Baker remains unaffected.
As reported last month, Authentic placed Ted Baker's U.K. and European retail and e-commerce businesses into administration six weeks after a relationship with a local partner turned sour.
Authentic had signed a partnership deal with AARC in April 2023 to operate Ted Baker's 120-plus retail stores and concessions, and the brand's online business.
According to Authentic, AARC failed to meet its financial obligations and was swiftly removed as a shareholder in the Ted Baker business.
Authentic's other Ted Baker partnerships remain in place and are unaffected by the AARC drama. In February, Authentic said that despite the difficulties facing U.K. and European business, it remains committed to Ted Baker and is confident in the brand's “long-term success.”
As part of the licensed model, Authentic appointed PDS Group as the designer and supplier of Ted Baker's core categories globally. PDS Group also services wholesale accounts in the U.K. and Europe.
OSL is the appointed operating partner for Ted Baker in North America, responsible for retail, distribution and e-commerce rights in the region.