London-founded fashion brand River Island has drafted in advisers from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to create a formal restructuring plan.
River Island has nearly 230 stores across the UK, and employs approximately 5,500 people; it is not yet known how many stores will close under the proposed changes.
The fashion brand, founded in 1948 by Bernard Lewis and his brothers, has avoided the move to pureplay that followed the demise of one-time rivals including Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Burtons. It continues to be family owned through the Lewis Trust Group.
River Island Clothing Co’s latest Companies House listing highlights pre-tax losses have reached £33.2mn, with a drop of more than 19% in turnover which fell to £578.1mn for the year ending 30 December 2023.
River Island warned of a multitude of financial and operational risks to its business in this posting, it stated: “The market for retailing of fashion clothing is fast changing with customer preferences for more diverse, convenient and speedier shopping journeys and with increasing competition especially in the digital space.”
“The key business risks for the group are the pressures of a highly competitive and changing retail environment combined with increased economic uncertainty.
“A number of geopolitical events have resulted in continuing supply chain disruption as well as energy, labour and food price increases, driving inflation and interest rates higher and resulting in weaker disposable income and lower consumer confidence.”
River Island had stressed that 2025 would be a “year of reset”, involving revamped product lines, store investment and potential staff changes.
It had been reported in January that River Island would work with AlixPartners on a cost reduction and profit improvement plan. AlixPartners’ role is now understood to have been superseded by PwC.
Stay informed
Our editor carefully curates two newsletters a week filled with up-to-date news, analysis and research, click here to subscribe to the FREE newsletter sent straight to your inbox and why not follow us on LinkedIn to receive the latest updates on our research and analysis.
