When and where the 2000's coolest fashion store Topshop will return to Leeds (full list of stores)
It was the coolest brand for teenage girls in the 2000s and 2010s, epitomised by IT girls and models including Kate Moss and the ‘London Look’.
Leeds boasted three Topshop and Topman stores, based in Briggate, White Rose Shopping Centre and Kirkstall Bridge shopping park in its heyday.
The brand was originally launched in a Sheffield basement by Raymond Burton in 1964. The very first Topman store was in Leeds when the men’s version of the brand was added in 1978.
Sir Philip Green bought Topshop in 2002 and high profile collaborations, including famously with Kate Moss, came to define the ‘London look’ era of the brand which became wildly popular.
But Topshop and Topman vanished off high streets in 2021 after parent group Arcadia collapsed. The Topshop brand remained online only after being purchased by Asos.
But now it’s coming back to the high street - including Leeds - sitting inside John Lewis stores. Topshop and Topman clothes will be sold in John Lewis shops nationwide from February next year as part of a new partnership between the firms. It comes amid efforts from the department store chain to drive its growth as it continues with a major transformation plan under boss Peter Ruis.He said the brand, which is part of the John Lewis Partnership with supermarket chain Waitrose, is “very optimistic” ahead of the key Christmas period.
READ MORE: Shops we have loved and lost in Leeds
John Lewis is investing significantly in its fashion business as part of its strategy. On Wednesday, John Lewis confirmed that it will start selling Topshop products in 32 of its stores across the UK next year, with Topman products launching in six sites.
It comes weeks after Topshop returned to physical stores with products in Liberty in central London. However, the latest move will mark the first time customers across the UK will be able to see the brand in stores again after four years under the ownership of Asos.
Mr Ruis, managing director of John Lewis, said: “We think this is something people will queue outside the door for. We have younger customers, beauty is a classic example of that, and John Lewis is multi-generational, but I think it will bring in more. It will bring more of those ‘family day out’ shoppers and as the only place to go for it, we will hopefully be driving customers who don’t always come through the door, across all age groups.”
Michelle Wilson, managing director of Topshop, said: “The conversations we’ve had with customers around the relaunch is that people are desperate to see Topshop back in stores, so we do think we will bring customers into John Lewis that might not have come in before.”
Topshop products will be available at the following John Lewis stores:
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Newcastle
- Leeds
- Liverpool
- Trafford, Manchester
- Cheadle, Manchester
- Cardiff, Wales
- Nottingham, Nottinghamshire
- Leicester, Leicestershire
- Solihull, West Midlands
- Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
- Norwich, Norfolk
- Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
- Welwyn, Hertfordshire
- Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire
- Chelmsford, Essex
- Cribbs Causeway, Bristol
- Exeter, Devon
- Oxford, Oxfordshire
- High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
- Reading, Berkshire
- Bluewater Kent
- Horsham, West Sussex
- Southampton, Hampshire