Sports Direct has shut down almost half of its Debenhams concessions as part of its strategy to become “the Selfridges of sport”.
Four out of nine of its concessions have been pulled from Debenhams stores, two of which are in the department store‘s Oxford Street flagship in London.
The news comes after Sports Direct posted a 59 per cent slump in pre-tax profits in July.
“The closures came as a direct result of overlap with locations for future or current flagship stores,” a spokesman for the sportswear retailer said.
“We remain committed to developing our relationship with Debenhams.”
After Sports Direct’s full-year results were revealed, the company unveiled a turnaround strategy that would see it overhaul its bricks-and-mortar estate.
Sports Direct spent £317 million last year on store acquisitions and now plans to open up to 18 UK stores in the current fiscal year.
It’s expected that half of those new stores this year would be flagships.
Sports Direct also has a 21.01 per cent stake in Debenhams. The retailer began building its stake in the department store in 2014 and upped its interest at least three times since April this year, when it had just a 13.38 per cent stake.
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