Bank Fashion: last stores will be shutting down in the coming days

Former football player Andy Scott founded Bank Fashion in 1994 in Bury, Lancashire. Brands such as Jack Jones, Criminal Damage, DKNY or Superdry were distributed by the 84 stores of the company which employed more than 1,500 persons, until now. Aimed at the youth market, Bank Fashion mostly survived in a very tough and challenging environment, not only on the streets but also online. The fashion retailer was experiencing significant losses for several years. It has been bought by JD Sports in 2007, which resold it to Hilco last November.

Hilco Capital is a renowned – and sometimes controversial – investor specialized in turnaround. It notably restructured HMV in 2013. The upcoming Christmas was going to be revealing for the future of Bank Fashion. The spending spree of end of the year usually highlights the brands who can make it, and those who won't. Hilco rapidly informed that it was in fact a failure and that Bank Fashion couldn't be saved. The retailer chain was put into administration at the very beginning of this year and the stores were closed down one after the other. The remaining stores (listed below) will have to lower the curtain for good by the end of this month. Sadly, it is expected that Bank Fashion won't be the only one to find an unfortunate end this year.

The Bank Fashion stores remaining open until the end of April:

• Birmingham Bullring
• Bradford
• Bolton Oot
• Glasgow Braehead
• Leicester High Cross
• Merryhill
• Trafford Centre
• West Bromwich
• White Rose Leeds

*Photo: H&J Martin