Ikea set to take on Topshop flagship store on Oxford Street
Ikea has reportedly agreed a deal to take on Topshop’s flagship store on Oxford Street for around £385m.
The furniture conglomerate has also bought the 73,000 sq ft NikeTown and a 4,700 sq ft Vans shop, adjacent to the Topshop store, according to real estate publication React News.
Ikea is thought to be planning a fresh flagship store at the 214 Oxford Street site, which once saw 400,000 customers each week before the fashion brand’s collapse.
The Netherlands-based company said it had no plans to share at this time about a new site.
A spokesperson for Ikea said: “We are on a journey to create a new Ikea that is even more affordable, accessible and sustainable.”
“As part of our accessibility plans in the UK & Ireland, we are constantly looking for new ways to better meet our customers’ needs.
“This includes investing in our online offer, rebuilding and adapting existing Ikea stores, and exploring different formats and locations as part of a new city centre approach. We review our expansion strategy on an ongoing basis but have no plans to share at this time.”
The property is the largest asset owned by Topshop’s parent company Arcadia, which collapsed into administration after the pandemic was the final nail in the coffin for several high-street fashion businesses.
Earlier this year, administrators appointed liquidators to oversee the liquidation of 21 companies within the group.
Mazars was tasked with the liquidation of 21 companies within the group and with repaying roughly £30m to creditors.
Proceeds from the property sale will reportedly be used to pay senior lender Apollo Global Management the £311.6m it is owed with the remainder going to the Arcadia pension fund.
Joanne Fearnley, partner and property expert at retail specialist law firm Gordons, said the move demonstrated the ongoing shift in high street shopping trends.
She said: “There is an argument to suggest that this could be good news for existing high street brands who have been struggling in recent times, given the trend towards online, out of town retail and insolvency of some major high street retailers. Is this a shift to see more home and bulky items retailers take space to provide a full offering alongside food, clothes, health and beauty retailers?”