Shropshire Council in behind-the-scenes talks to save Shrewsbury's House of Fraser
Talks are being held behind the scenes in an effort to secure the future of Shrewsbury's House of Fraser store.
Shropshire Council says it has held discussions about keeping the store open since the announcement was made in June that it was facing closure.
Uncertainty still surrounds the future of the town's high street store – more than a month after the £90 million takeover of its parent company House of Fraser.
The retail chain went bust with debts of nearly £1 billion and was bought out of administration by Mike Ashley and his Sports Direct empire.
Despite threats to close stores because of clashes with ‘greedy’ landlords since the takeover, Mr Ashley’s team has confirmed that seven of 59 will stay open, including Telford.
But there has been no word on the others, including House of Fraser's Shrewsbury and Birmingham branches and Beatties in Wolverhampton.
Gemma Davies, Shropshire Council’s head of economic growth, said today: “We’ve been engaging with the store ever since the initial announcement was made to close it, alongside Shrewsbury BID. We will continue to work locally to secure its future.”
House of Fraser went into administration in August, owning millions of pounds to suppliers.
Mr Ashley has been attempting to secure new deals with landlords across the country.
Maplin, Toy R Us and Poundworld have already collapsed this year, while Mothercare, Carpetright and New Look have all closed stores. Pressure is also mounting on stationery chain Paperchase.
