Topshop

From Vero - Wikipedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search

{{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Short description {{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Main other{{#invoke:Check for clobbered parameters|check|nested=1|template=Infobox company|cat=Template:Main other|name; company_name|logo; company_logo|logo_alt; alt|trade_name; trading_name|former_names; former_name|type; company_type|predecessors; predecessor|successors; successor|foundation; founded|founders; founder|defunct; dissolved|hq_location; location|hq_location_city; location_city|hq_location_country; location_country|num_locations; locations|areas_served; area_served|net_income; profit|net_income_year; profit_year|owners; owner |homepage; website }}{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox company with unknown parameter "_VALUE_" | ignoreblank=y | alt | area_served | areas_served | assets | assets_year | aum | brands | company_logo | company_name | company_type | defunct | dissolved | divisions | embed | equity | equity_year | fate | footnotes | headquarters | former_name | former_names | foundation | founded | founder | founders | genre | homepage | hq_location | hq_location_city | hq_location_country | incorporated | image | image_alt | image_caption | image_size | image_upright | income_year | industry | ISIN | key_people | location | location_city | location_country | locations | logo | logo_alt | logo_caption | logo_class | logo_size | logo_upright | members | members_year | module | name | native_name | native_name_lang | net_income | net_income_year | num_employees | num_employees_year | num_locations | num_locations_year | operating_income | owner | owners | parent | predecessor | predecessors | production | production_year | products | profit | profit_year | rating | ratio | revenue | revenue_year | romanized_name | services | subsid | subsidiaries | successor | successors | traded_as | trade_name | trading_name | type | website| qid | fetchwikidata | suppressfields | noicon | nocat | demo | categories }}

Topshop (stylised in all caps; originally Top Shop) is a British online fast-fashion retailer, which specialises in women's clothing, shoes and accessories. It is majority owned by Danish company, Bestseller.

In 2024, ASOS sold 75% of Topshop and Topman to Bestseller.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Previously, it was part of the Arcadia Group, controlled by Sir Philip Green, but went into administration in late 2020 before being purchased by ASOS on 1 February 2021. It previously had approximately 510 shops worldwide, but closed all of its physical locations and operated solely via online retail from 2020 to 2025. It will return to physical retail on 21 August 2025, at McElhinney's Department Store in Ballybofey, Ireland.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Update inline

History

File:Topshop Oxford Street London 2009.jpg
Topshop's former flagship shop in Oxford Street, London

1960s-1970s

Topshop started as a brand extension of the department store Peter Robinson in the 1960s and originally sold fashion by young British designers, such as Mary Quant and Stirling Cooper. Peter Robinson was a women's fashion chain that had been acquired by Burton in 1946.<ref name="Guardian Brewerton">Template:Cite news</ref> Topshop was founded in 1964 as Peter Robinson's Top Shop, a youth brand within the Sheffield branch and also had a large department in the Oxford Street shop. This was high fashion for the "young and different generation" as The Times put it in 1965, and the department stocked garments by names such as Mary Quant and Gerald McCann.<ref name="The Times 56365">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="V&A McCann">Template:Cite web</ref> By 1966, it had a branch in the Peter Robinson store in Norwich.<ref name="The Times 56791">Template:Cite news</ref>

Peter Robinson's Top Shop buyer Diane Wadey had an eye for young talent and introduced Royal College of Art graduate Jane Whiteside to Jeff Cooper and Ronnie Stirling. The Stirling Cooper brand they created soon had its own sections in Top Shop shops in London and Sheffield, as well as being stocked in Peter Robinson stores in Norwich and Bristol.<ref name="The Times 57192">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="The Times 57292">Template:Cite news</ref> Other brands stocked at Top Shop included Jeff Banks, French Connection and Radley Cooper.<ref name="The Times 60340">Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1973, parent company Burton Group launched a major expansion of its womenswear division, splitting Top Shop by Peter Robinson into two chains to be known as Peter Robinson and Top Shop. It was announced that while Peter Robinson would target the over 25s market, Top Shop would focus on the age range from 13 to 24, with Ralph Halpern directing the new venture.<ref name="The Times 58702">Template:Cite news</ref> By 1974, Peter Robinson had been reduced from 22 stores to six, while Top Shop was developing independently (still retaining the one co-branded shop in Oxford Street) and was described as "highly profitable". Its key retail rivals included Miss Selfridge and the Way In boutique arm of Harrods.<ref name="The Times 59113">Template:Cite news</ref> Within two years, Top Shop had 55 standalone branches, with more to come according to an article in The Times. Fashion editor Prudence Glynn described it as having a: "sharp definition of purpose".<ref name="The Times 59532">Template:Cite news</ref> It made profits of £1m that year.<ref name="The Times 59868">Template:Cite news</ref> By 1978, Top Shop accounted for a third of Burton's operating profits.<ref name="The Times 60299">Template:Cite news</ref>

Also in 1978, Burton embarked on a drive to win a larger share of the men's fashion market in the midst of declining sales of men's tailoring, launching the Topman brand along similar lines to its women's retail arm. It was described by an executive as: "more of a 'brother to Top Shop than a son of Burton'."<ref name="The Times 60267">Template:Cite news</ref> The following year, Burton announced sales and profits up by 30 per cent in womenswear, with Topman also being cited as highly profitable.<ref name="The Times 60503">Template:Cite news</ref> By the start of the 1980s, the brand was being referred to as Topshop.<ref name="The Times 60479">Template:Cite news</ref>

1980s-2010s

In the 1980s, Topshop struggled to maintain its profile as a fashion brand, but by the late 1990s it began undergoing a revival. In 1994, it launched a collection with Red or Dead.<ref name="The Times 64919">Template:Cite news</ref> It continued to work with designer talent, such as former Clements Ribeiro assistant Markus Lupfer – described in 1999 as "so hot he's practically steaming" – also working with, among others, Hussein Chalayan, Tristan Webber and Tracey Boyd. Typically, such ranges sold out quickly, and attracted column inches in the fashion press.<ref name="The Times 66678">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="The Times 08052000">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="The Times Get the Look for Less 08052000">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="The Times 06092000">Template:Cite news</ref>

The brand pioneered online fashion, launching UK's first online fashion store for Topshop <ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="BBC British Style Genius">Template:Cite news</ref> This turnaround is often credited to the promotion of Jane Shepherdson as brand director.<ref name="The Observer Vernon">Template:Cite news</ref> Having begun her career as a buyer, she rose through the ranks at the company. When she took on brand direction, Topshop had an annual profit of £9 million; by 2005 it was making over £100 million annually.<ref name="Daily Telegraph Callender">Template:Cite news</ref>

In May 2007, British supermodel Kate Moss, designed her first collection for the brand.<ref>"Kate Moss Confirmed for Topshop" Rogue Connect, 20 September 2006</ref> The appointment of Moss was announced just before the departure of Shepherdson for Whistles.<ref name="The Observer Vernon"/> In the same year, artist Stella Vine designed a limited edition range inspired by her artworks. These included T-shirts,<ref>Stella Vine tee at Topshop, Catwalk Queen, 2007. Retrieved 9 January 2009.</ref> vest tops, and T-shirt dresses,<ref>One of Stella Vine's T-shirt dresses for TopShop, Topshop.com, 2007. Retrieved 9 January 2009.</ref> with the labels designed in pink glitter.<ref>"Stella Vine for Top Shop" Template:Webarchive, Topshop, 27 July 2007. Retrieved 8 December 2008.</ref> The Guardian commented that "the fact that the range of T-shirts she has recently designed for TopShop – emblazoned with slogans like Breaking Up With Her Boyfriend – are flying out, speaks volumes for her public support."<ref name=moody>Moody, Paul. "Everyone's talking about Stella Vine", The Guardian, 12 July 2007. Retrieved 9 December 2008.</ref>

File:Jourdan Dunn Catwalk.jpg
Jourdan Dunn at the 2009 London Fashion Week Topshop show.

Under her tenure, Topshop became a key sponsor of London Fashion Week, sponsoring its Newgen arm that supports emerging British designers from 2002 and the Fashion East initiative – which acts as a bridge between London's fashion colleges and the Newgen scheme – a year later. This sponsorship continues and since 2005 it has been part of the London Fashion Week catwalk schedule.<ref name="The Independent Gonsalves">Template:Cite news</ref>

In December 2012, Philip Green sold a 25% stake in Topshop and Topman to the US-based private equity group Leonard Green and Partners for US$805 million.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Under the terms of the deal, Arcadia retained Topshop's flagship Oxford Street shop (said to be worth between £400 and £500 million).<ref name="DT Ruddick">Template:Cite news</ref> Green said that the deal would enable Topshop to speed up its expansion, particularly within the US.<ref name="DT Ruddick"/>

In 2014, Beyoncé signed a deal to launch an activewear brand with Topshop. The 50-50 venture was initially called Parkwood Topshop Athletic Ltd and was scheduled to launch its first dance, fitness and sports ranges in autumn 2015.<ref name="Time Alter">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Forbes Adamczyk">Template:Cite news</ref> In November 2015, it was revealed that the brand would launch in April 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The brand was later revealed to be called Ivy Park.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2015, Topshop started collaborating with the online retailer Zalando and began selling their merchandise in their shops. Advertisements featuring model Cara Delevingne were broadcast in Germany, Switzerland and France.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

2020s

Administration

Arcadia Group went into administration at 8pm GMT on 30 November 2020.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> All of its physical shops were closed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 25 January 2021, ASOS said it was in "exclusive" talks to buy Arcadia's Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands out of administration, though it only wanted the brands, not the shops. A consortium including Next had earlier dropped a bid to buy Topshop and Topman; interest in Arcadia operations had also been expressed by Mike Ashley's Frasers Group, a consortium including JD Sports, and online retailer Boohoo.<ref name="BBC-25Jan2021">Template:Cite news</ref>

On 1 February 2021, ASOS announced it had acquired the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands out of administration for £265 million, paying an additional £65 million for current and pre-ordered stock. ASOS will keep 300 employees on as part of the deal but will not keep any of the brand's stores, putting 2,500 jobs at risk.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In July 2021, it was announced that Nordstrom had acquired an unspecified minority stake in the Topshop Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT businesses from ASOS, with the intention of selling the brands online and instore across North America.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 5 September 2024, ASOS announced that it sold a 75% stake of Topshop & Topman to the Danish company Bestseller. It was announced that the Topshop & Topman websites would relaunch within 6 months of the deal with Bestseller, as well it was hinted that the brands could return to the high street with stores, the chief executive of ASOS commented "We might open stores. We will consider it for sure but we have no specific agreement to open a certain number".

On 22 July 2025, it was announced that Topshop's products would be available to buy from a physical shop for the first time in five years, at McElhinney's Department Store in Ballybofey, Ireland.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Through a landmark national partnership from February 2026, Topshop will be available in 32 John Lewis stores while Topman will be on offer in six, and the brand will also be available to shop at johnlewis.com.

International operations and franchises

Topshop had around 510 shops including those that are franchised; over 300 shops were located in the UK. It had operated across 37 countries and via online operations in several markets.<ref name=latimes>Template:Cite news</ref>

Topshop expanded into Singapore in 2000 with an outlet opening at Orchard Road.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

File:Top Shop Sutton High Street, Greater London.JPG
A branch of Topshop in Sutton High Street, Sutton, London

Topshop began planning its expansion to the United States in the mid-2000s and was tipped to open in New York as early as 2007.<ref name="New York Times La Ferla">Template:Cite news</ref> Currently it operates via a website and sells in Nordstrom shops. A small number of wholly owned shops were located in major cities.<ref name="Wall Street Journal GORDON">Template:Cite news</ref> On 5 November 2014 it opened a flagship shop in New York City, located on Fifth Avenue. The shop was the largest international site, and second only to the Oxford Street, London shop in square footage.<ref name="CNBC Ellyatt">Template:Cite news</ref> This was its second shop in New York City, the first having opened on Broadway in 2009.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 23 May 2019, Arcadia filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in the United States and announced that all 11 US freestanding Topshop stores would be liquidated and closed; however, Topshop would continue to sell its merchandise exclusively at Nordstrom locations.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Topshop expanded into New Zealand in 2010, opening a small concession within a department store.<ref name="NZ Herald Adams">Template:Cite news</ref> Located on Auckland's Queen Street, the flagship shop sold out of some of its ranges before it had opened.<ref name="Stuff.co.nz_3647411">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Stuff.co.nz_3499248">Template:Cite news</ref> In September 2017, the franchise went into receivership and both shops closed on 28 September 2017.

Topshop announced a five-year international expansion plan in early 2011, planning to open new shops across Asia, Australia and the US as well as seeking opportunities in Europe.<ref name="Brand Republic Levy">Template:Cite news</ref> Although the Japanese flagship shops launched in 2006, all 5 shops in Japan shut in 2015. In 2013, parent group Arcadia began stepping up its franchise deals, announcing a planned 150 new shop openings with partners in Canada, Australia and Vietnam, to include Topshop and Topman shops.<ref name="Retail Week Goldfingle">Template:Cite news</ref>

Topshop expanded into Australia in 2011, with shops in New South Wales and Victoria.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2013 it opened a shop in Brisbane's CBD in a location previously occupied by Borders. However, in mid-2017 Topshop's Australian operations went into voluntary administration.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> By mid 2019, only Sydney's Market Street store remained opened, after the closure of stores at Westfield Bondi Junction and Melbourne's Emporium earlier in the year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In March 2020 Topshop closed its final Australian store, 11 years after its initial launch.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In November 2012, Topshop launched its first shop in South Africa. In April 2013 a Topshop-Topman shop launched in Cape Town, at the V&A Waterfront.<ref name=ft>Template:Cite web</ref> On 24 October 2013, Topshop opened a concession at Galeries Lafayette in Paris, its first outlet in France.<ref name="Retail Week Lawson 24102013">Template:Cite news</ref>

In 2015, Topshop opened a flagship shop in Auckland and 10 months later a shop in Wellington.<ref name="NZ Herald Adams">Template:Cite news</ref> Located on Auckland's Queen Street, the flagship shop sold out of some of its ranges before it had opened.<ref name="Stuff.co.nz_3647411">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Stuff.co.nz_3499248">Template:Cite news</ref> In September 2017, the franchise went into receivership and both shops closed on 28 September 2017.

On 17 September 2020, all of Topshop's outlets in Singapore were closed down, citing losses.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Topshop was acquired by ASOS in February 2021.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Its physical shops around the world were closed shortly thereafter.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

UK flagship stores

File:Topshop and Topman (17th December 2012).JPG
The Briggate, Leeds branch of Topshop was the third largest branch in the UK

Protests and controversy

Topshop was criticised for its overseas sourcing policies and its tax arrangements.<ref name="The Observer Townsend">Template:Cite news</ref> In December 2007, the Edinburgh branch was targeted by student campaigning network People & Planet for allegedly using cotton picked by "slave labour".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In December 2010, some 200 campaigners staged a sit-in that closed Topshop's Oxford Circus shop, and in Brighton a number of protestors glued themselves to the branch windows. Other high streets in towns and cities across Britain saw similar protests in a day of action by UK Uncut against corporate tax arrangements.<ref name=telegraphtaxprotest>Template:Cite news</ref> Two months later, police arrested a man for writing "pay your taxes" in washable ink on the wall of a Topshop branch in Colchester.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In July 2013, the singer Rihanna won a lawsuit against Topshop to prevent it using her image unofficially on a T-shirt. The lawsuit was launched on the premise that Topshop customers would assume Rihanna endorsed the company, that would lead to a false representation of her celebrity image and increased tensions with her then endorsement deal with River Island, a high-street rival.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Judge Justice Birss agreed that customers would likely be deceived into believing it had the singer's approval. Topshop launched an appeal to the High Court, accusing Rihanna of wrongfully advocating that: "only a celebrity may ever market his or her own character"<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Judge Justice Birss of misreading the law on "celebrity merchandising".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The appeal was rejected unanimously at the Court of Appeal in London on 22 January 2015<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In July 2015, Topshop was criticised for its mannequins which some judged as too skinny. After a customer complained on Facebook, the fashion chain stopped using its tall and skinny female shop mannequins.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was also criticised in October 2018 for removing an in-store pop-up in its London flagship store that was used to promote feminism with publisher Penguin after only being up for 20 minutes. The fashion retailer had agreed to host the pop-up with Penguin, to help launch the book Feminists Don't Wear Pink (And Other Lies), written by Scarlett Curtis, with products for sale supporting the UN charity Girl Up. <ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In May 2016, the UVW union organised a large protest outside Topshop's Oxford Circus store attended by Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell MP. It was the headlining event in a national "day of action" involving 16 other Topshop stores around the country, supported by various trade unions and activist groups, calling for the Living Wage and dignified treatment of outsourced cleaners being victimised for trade union activity.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Two weeks earlier, an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons supported by 11 MPs noted:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

that contract cleaners employed at Topshop stores by the contractor Britannia Services Group are paid below the living wage, forcing hard-working staff into debt and poverty; believes that there is no excuse for profitable multi-national companies which provide huge payouts to shareholders refusing to pay decent wages; fully supports cleaners contracted to work at Topshop stores who are unionising, protesting and campaigning for the living wage; is extremely concerned by reports that these staff are being victimised and bullied for asking for a decent wage; further believes that it is utterly disgraceful for the Arcadia Group, which owns Topshop, or its contractors to punish staff for asking for decent wages

References

Template:Reflist

Template:Commons category

Template:Arcadia Group

Retrieved from "https://wiki.sarg.dev/index.php?title=Topshop&oldid=564282"