Business

Debenhams’ Irish story began with confidence but ended in despair

Retailer’s woes were exacerbated, not caused, by the Covid-19 shutdown

Debenhams said it was “desperately sorry” over the decision to liquidate its Irish business. Photograph: Eric Luke

Sat Apr 11 2020 - 05:23

The sad demise of Debenhams’ operations in the Republic after 24 years, with the loss of 2,000 jobs, will be recorded as the first major retail casualty of the coronavirus crisis though its decision to permanently close its doors here is as much a reflection of the chain’s difficulties over recent years, not months.

As soon as the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic became evident, Debenhams’ financial vulnerability put it high, if not right at the top, of the at-risk list. With the department store chain’s UK parent carrying some £600 million (€684 million) in debt, its woes were certainly not specific to the Irish market.

The UK stores have now gone into administration for the second time in 12 months in the hope of a fresh rescue but it isn’t obvious at this stage where it might source the investment it needs to survive in its home market either.

The decision to liquidate the Irish business, for which it said it was “desperately sorry”, is still a painful drawing of a line.

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Debenhams opened its first outlet in the Republic in the Jervis shopping centre in 1996, bang-smack in the middle of a confident wave of British retailers extending their footprints here.

Modern stock

At the time, its fashion, homewares and choice of concessions would have seemed more modern and often kinder to the wallet than those found in stuffier department stores.

Debenhams liked what it saw of the Irish market, with its big expansion in the Republic coming in 2006 when it bought the leases for nine Roches Stores outlets.

Alas, this meant it only enjoyed a couple of years of Celtic Tiger consumer spending before recession hit mid-market retailers hard. Despite developing decent online shopping and click-and-collect services, Debenhams didn’t quite recover the momentum it needed to stay out of trouble.

Irish shoppers will remember Debenhams for bright and friendly stores that were never too far away from a sale. Equally, they may struggle to identify what it was about the retailer’s offering that was unique.

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