ScS to close all House of Fraser concessions
Furniture giant ScS is to close all of its concessions at House of Fraser after sales slumped by more than half following the stricken department store chain being bought by Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct.
ScS said the 27 concessions would close by the end of January.
The company is the latest among partners and suppliers to abandon House of Fraser. Orders at the ScS concessions fell by 52.5 per cent in the 12 weeks to 20 October.
However, across its entire business ScS has posted an 11 per cent rise in annual profits, with a £4.3 million increase in revenue in the year to £337.3 million.
ScS has decided to close its ground-floor operation at Beatties in Wolverhampton at the end of next month, bringing to an end a four-year tie-in with the iconic store which has just been saved from closure.
Standalone
It also has 101 standalone stores, including at the Telford Forge Retail Park.
Its House of Fraser concessions employed 124 staff and made up 7.1 per cent of total sales last year.
David Knight, the chief executive of ScS, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our colleagues who have worked in our House of Fraser concessions over the past few years for their dedication and hard work.
“However, given developments in House of Fraser over the last few months, it has become clear that the partnership was no longer beneficial to ScS.”
Since the Sports Direct takeover, a string of House of Fraser stores up and down the country had confirmed they would be closing as talks with site owners foundered, including in Shrewsbury.
But more than 20 stores, including in Telford and the flagship Oxford Street branch, have been saved.
