January 6, 2020 4.31 pm This story is over 50 months old

Lincoln Debenhams store safe from New Year closures

Turbulent times for the department store chain
Turbulent times for Debenhams. Photo: The Lincolnite

The Lincoln branch of Debenhams appears to be safe for now after it escaped the latest round of store closures.

The department store chain previously revealed that it will close 22 of its outlets in early 2020. York, Haverfordwest and Orpington closed in December.

A list of a further 19 stores closing this month has now been revealed, which will reportedly result in 660 job losses. Both the Lincoln and Scunthorpe Debenhams escaped the list.

The latest round of closures will take place between January 11-19. It is understood that this will be the first wave of shutdowns as the retailer intends to close 50 of its worst-performing stores using a company voluntary agreement (CVA) insolvency process.

The remaining 28 will reportedly be chosen based on the outcome of crunch talks with landlords. Under the CVA, it is understood that rents will also be cut across many of its remaining 163 stores.

Debenhams was previously taken over by lenders in a pre-pack administration. New owners launched a major store closure hit list and insolvencies. A last-ditch bid from minority shareholder Mike Ashley, the owner of Sports Direct, failed, wiping out his £150 million stake.

On Monday, January 6, Debenhams also announced that Abigail Comber, who spent most of her 24 year carer so far at British Airways, will join the Group on Tuesday as Chief Marketing Officer.

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