River Island has confirmed which of its 230 shops will close as part of a major restructure to try and save the business.
The fashion retailer announced last week that it will close its least profitable 33 branches across the UK after making a loss of £33.2milion in 2023.
Hundreds of jobs are already at risk, but another 71 branches could also shut down if River Island is unable to renegotiate rents with its landlords.
The brand’s owners blamed shoppers buying online instead of on the high street, as well as the increasing cost of running physical stores, for the slump in trading after sales fell by 19%.
The family-owned retailer, which was founded in 1948, brought in advisers earlier this year to oversee the restructure process.
Their plan was approved by a High Court judge earlier this month as part of River Island’s efforts to save the business.
It comes after a redundancy programme at its head office in London in January to try and save some cash.
River Island did not confirm how many people were made redundant out of its 5,500 staff nationwide.
Speaking after the restructure was approved, CEO Ben Lewis said: ‘We are pleased that River Island’s restructuring plan has been approved by the High Court.
‘We have a clear transformation strategy to ensure the long-term viability of the business, and this decision gives us a strong platform to deliver this.
‘Recent improvements in our fashion offer and shopping experience are starting to show results, and the restructuring plan will enable us to align our store estate to our customers’ needs.
‘We are grateful to our suppliers, landlords and other stakeholders for their constructive engagement and shared confidence in River Island’s future.
Full list of River Island branches set to close by January 2026
- Beckton
- Bangor Bloomfield
- Wrexham
- Edinburgh Princes Street
- Hereford
- Surrey Quays
- Didcot
- Sutton Coldfield
- Aylesbury
- Burton-Upon-Trent
- Northwich
- Taunton
- Workington
- Falkirk
- Cumbernauld
- Kirkcaldy
- Gloucester
- Hartlepool
- Brighton
- Lisburn
- Norwich
- Oxford
- Poole
- Kilmarnock
- Hanley
- Barnstaple
- Grimsby
- Leeds Birstall Park
- Rochdale
- Great Yarmouth
- St Helens
- Stockton On Tees
- Perth
‘River Island is a much-loved retailer, with a decades-long history on the British high street.
‘However the well-documented migration of shoppers from the high street to online has left the business with a large portfolio of stores that is no longer aligned to our customers’ needs.
‘The sharp rise in the cost of doing business over the last few years has only added to the financial burden.
‘We have a clear strategy to transform the business to ensure its long-term viability.
‘Recent improvements in our fashion offer and in-store shopping experience are already showing very positive results, but it is only with a restructuring plan that we will be able to see this strategy through and secure River Island’s future as a profitable retail business.
‘We regret any job losses as a result of store closures, and we will try to keep these to a minimum.’
Latest store closure news
There are several well-known UK brands closing their stores in the next few weeks.
Poundland is closing 11 more of its branches this week, and only a fortnight ago Claire’s announced it was falling into administration, putting all of its shops at risk.
Hobbycraft is also in the process of closing several branches.
Meanwhile, in London, Simmons Bars is closing four of its sites after appointing administrators.
Morrisons has also closed 17 of its supermarkets recently, resulting in 3,600 job losses.
Matthew Weaver KC, representing River Island at the High Court, said the company ‘simply has not been able to reverse’ a trend of financial difficulty.
He blamed a decline in footfall and sales caused by ‘the pressures of a highly competitive and changing retail environment as well as the prevailing trend away from high street retail stores to online shopping’.
He warned that if the plan was not sanctioned, the ‘most likely scenario’ is that River Island would ‘enter into an insolvency process within which there would be a sale of the stock, brand and intellectual property’.
The business was forecast to be unable to pay its debts from late August or early September of this year, with a predicted £43million shortfall.
Its restructure plan will see 33 shops closed and rents reduced at 71 of its other branches.
Landlords are being asked to cut rents for three years and potentially stop payments completely on some sites in a bid to stem losses.
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