New Look has made headlines over the last year following a string of closures – but what is actually going on at the company?
New Look has been a high street retailer since the 1960s, selling women’s, men’s, and children’s clothing and continues to be a staple of the British high street. Founded in 1969 by Tom Singh, the first shop opened in Taunton, Somerset. By the 1990s, New Look had expanded significantly, growing from 200 to an impressive 1,000 stores.
In 2004, the company went private, with founder Tom Singh, chief executive Phil Wrigley, and private equity investors taking over. In 2015, South African investment firm Brait SE acquired a 90% stake in New Look for £780 million, with the Singh family and management retaining the remaining 10%. Tom Singh announced his departure from the company in 2019.
New Look launched its online store in 2007, and it expanded outside the UK, opening stores across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. At its peak, the company boasted over 900 stores internationally – alongside its UK offerings – and employed over 18,000 staff. However, alongside other high street giants, it has struggled over the last decade.
The company has restructured its store estate twice in the past six years, reducing its portfolio from around 600 UK stores in 2018. The high street name has just 364 stores left in the UK and employs around 8,000 people. Here is everything you need to know about what is going on with the fashion chain – including store closures.
Last week, the fashion chain announced that all 26 of its Republic of Ireland stores would close as the Irish branch of the business had gone into liquidation. The stores closed immediately on February 20 when the news was announced and reopened three days later on February 23 for a clearance sale. The closures are set to result in around 350 job losses.
The company said its Irish operation has struggled for some years, impacted by a range of factors including “supply-chain and in-market costs, and squeezed consumer spending”. It added: “New Look has undergone changes to adapt to this market – including marketing initiatives, store adaptations and price range trials – however, following a strategic review of the Irish business, New Look Group concluded it was no longer viable to continue trading in Ireland.”
New Look said it would be refocusing its investment on its UK business and its digital offering, with collections from the fashion retailer continuing to be available through online retailers such as ASOS and Very.
The full list of stores closing in Ireland include:
Dublin
Cork
Galway
Other locations
This latest round of closures won’t affect New Look’s UK branches as the Republic of Ireland’s closures do not affect the UK New Look Group. However, the chain has already closed several stores this year, citing factors like “the landlord’s request” or “because the site has become unviable.”
Earlier this year, the Times reported that the chain was looking to “accelerate future store closures” when leases expire. The newspaper said this was due to the tax increases revealed in October’s budget. According to the report, around a quarter of its 364 UK stores – around 91 sites – could be at risk of closure. New Look did not confirm this report at the time.
New Look continues to be a major store and online retailer in the UK. Market research company Kantar ranked it second for overall women’s wear market share in the 18 to 44-year-old age range. More than 10million customers shop online, in-store and through the app. The retailer also has a global presence and sells in over 53 countries worldwide, and had nearly 250million site visits, up from 235million, in the financial year ending March 2024.
Last year, New Look invested £3.3million in 20 Manchester stores to improve their store designs, product merchandising, in-store technology, loyalty schemes, and employee upskilling. The upgrades included interactive displays allowing consumers to make next-day delivery orders as well as back-end systems improvements geared towards next-day click-and-collect and returns services. New Look said the upgrades will serve as a blueprint for further improvements across New Look’s wider store estate.
As mentioned before, a handful of New Look sites have closed already, with three going in January and one more in February. More are set for the coming few weeks. UK stores that have already closed this year include:
Three more stores are earmarked for closure in March. The retailer will close its St Austell store in Cornwall on March 4, followed by its Team Valley Retail World branch in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, on March 9. New Look in Preston will also close on March 20.
On the UK closures, a New Look spokesperson said: “Our store estate is an important part of our business, alongside our best-in-class website and app.
“We have recently invested over £3million in our stores in Greater Manchester to trial new omnichannel initiatives to improve customer experience. We also continue to invest in our thriving online platform which has resulted in a strong online sales performance, with volumes significantly outpacing last year and an improved online margin.”
“On occasion we do have to close stores, either due to the landlord’s request or because the site becomes unviable. However, we always remain on the lookout for appropriate new opportunities across the country and continue to invest in our existing store estate.”
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