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John Lewis will sell Topshop clothes in its shops form early next year, marking the brand’s mass return to Britain’s high streets after a four-year absence. The department store will start selling Topshop fashion ranges as part of a bid to poach young shoppers from rivals including Marks & Spencer.
It is also part of a major revival at Topshop that has already featured model Cara Delevingne and the announcement of a new boutique at posh department store Liberty. Some 32 John Lewis shops will start selling its ranges from February next year, while six will offer its Topman menswear lines. John Lewis managing director Peter Ruis said the tie-up would ‘resonate with Gen Zs, Gen Xs and everyone in between’.
After years of weak sales, Ruis is steering a turnaround at the partnership behind John Lewis and grocer Waitrose, alongside former Tesco boss Jason Tarry. This has involved hiring Rachel Morgans, who previously held top jobs at Topshop and Asos, as its head of fashion. She has overseen new collections that appeal to younger customers, as well as the introduction of more third-party brands to compete with the likes of M&S and Next. New collections to launch soon will also include Paul Smith, Barbour and Mulberry.
And now Topshop’s launch will appeal to shoppers, including teenagers who love the brand due to a ‘90’s revival’ trend on social media platforms such as TikTok, Ruis said. ‘We think this is something people will queue out of the door for,’ Ruis said. Ruis added: ‘Bringing Topshop and Topman back to high streets across the UK is a landmark moment, and we are thrilled to be their only nationwide partner. It’s the ultimate proof of our strategy: offering the most-loved brands alongside the unwavering trust of our brand promise. I grew up with these incredible brands. They have defined our high streets, bringing edge and accessibility with an iconic British lens.’
John Lewis has seen better fortunes since the return of its century-old ‘never knowingly undersold’ price pledge. The group is pumping £800million into its shops, including building beauty halls and new cafes. Michelle Wilson, managing director at Topshop, said: ‘We’re excited to partner with John Lewis, a trusted name in British retail, to bring Topshop and Topman to high streets across the country. This partnership is a key step in our mission to bring the best of fashion to everyone, engaging with shoppers in real life and delivering the style and quality they expect from our brands.’
During its heyday in the early noughties, Topshop was beloved by celebrities and young shoppers alike. Supermodel Kate Moss launched her own Topshop range in 2007 and went on to do 14 collaborations with the company.
As Sir Philip Green’s empire crumbled, Topshop went into administration in late 2020 and had closed the last of its 70 stores, including a flagship Oxford St shop, by early 2021. The Topshop brand was then rescued by Asos and revived online.
It has since sold a 75 per cent stake to its biggest shareholder, Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen. Asos boss José Antonio Ramos Calamonte said in April that the chain had spent ‘two years rebuilding the product assortment of Topshop’ ahead of the relaunch. ‘The time has come to come back, to be much more present with consumers in the UK, but also globally,’ he said.
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