Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge sold to Asos in £265m deal

Asos has acquired Topshop and other Arcadia brands in "a hugely exciting moment" as it seeks to "drive growth globally and accelerate its brand strategy".

The deal for Arcadia's prized brands, which will also see ASOS buy 30 million pounds of stock, does not include their 70 stores, putting thousands of jobs at risk and underlining the shift of power towards online retailers. Some 2,500 employees working at the brand's stores were not mentioned in the deal.

Administrators confirmed the deal, which should be completed by February 4, this morning.

ASOS will pay around £295m for the brands, goodwill and stock on hand, and also take on £30m in committed stock orders with additional one-off restructuring and transaction costs of around £20m, administrator Deloitte added.

The Arcadia Group dropped into administration late past year in the same week as the collapse of household name, Debenhams.

Retail union Usdaw's national officer, Dave Gill, called the Asos deal "another devastating blow for our high streets, coming only a week after the Debenhams brand was sold to Boohoo".

Nvidia GeForce Now game streaming service reaches M1 MacBooks under ‘beta’ tag
Although you still need to purchase the games you want to play, you don't have to worry about whether your machine is compatible. It's a welcome addition to the platform's lineup of supported devices that helps it live up to its expectations a bit more.

"These are strong brands that resonate well with our core customer base".

Retail expert Elliott Jacobs of marketing group EMEA said the Asos buyout reflected the realities of the retail industry.

Separately, Boohoo has paid £55m to acquire the brand of collapsed department store chain Debenhams in a transaction which will see 118 stores close with the loss of more than 10,000 staff. Brand equity is strongest in the United Kingdom and they have an established presence in both the USA and Germany, two of our key strategic markets, Asos said.

The move reflects the changing face of the High Street, that has been accelerated by the pandemic, with many on-the-ground brands losing out to online retailers.

"We have been central to driving their recent growth online and, under our ownership, we will develop them further, using our design, marketing, technology and logistics expertise, and working closely with key strategic retail partners in the United Kingdom and around the world".