Sir Philip Green conducts review at Arcadia

Sir Philip Green has appointed Deloitte to conduct a review of his Arcadia fashion retail empire and it has been revealed that he has closed more than 200 stores across his portfolio in the past two years.

According to The Telegraph, Sir Philip has brought in the adviser to assist with a restructuring at the group, which includes Topshop and Topman, Dorothy Perkins, Miss Selfridge, Evans and Burton, that could lead to another raft of store closures.

The newspaper has revealed that since 2016, Arcadia has closed more than 200 of its stores and concessions with Dorothy Perkins the hardest hit, racking up 62 closures.

At the same time the Mail on Sunday has reported that 200 leases for the group, which operates close to 600 standalone stores, are due to expire. Around 100 are believed to be coming to an end this year and next.

A spokesperson told the newspaper: "We have a large historic estate and, naturally, there is an ongoing dialogue with landlords."

The latest published figures for Arcadia's parent company Taveta reveal the struggles faced by the chain as consumers gravitate towards online shopping and away from traditional high streets. Sir Philip's reputation has also taken a hit following the collapse of BHS and subsequent harassment allegations from former staff members, which he has strenuously denied.

In the latest filed accounts, Taveta's sales dropped 5.6% to £1.9bn in the year to August 2017. Its annual lease payments are around £183m.

Arcadia is just one of a number of major fashion retailers to consider or are actively carrying out significant store closures. Marks & Spencer, Debenhams and New Look are all closing stores. A report from retail adviser Altus Group this morning suggests that up to 23,000 shops could be closed during 2019.