Who is the name behind Topshop; What is the success and failure story like?
“Topshop, Topman” are iconic brands. But there is a story of failure as well as success. Here is that story:
Topshop first opened in the 1960s as Peter Robinson's Topshop as the Sheffield branch of the Burton group. Let's first examine the Burton Group company...
Montague Burton, a Lithuanian immigrant, had arrived in England in 1900 with just £100 in his pocket. He started his career as a peddler at the age of 15 and opened his first store in Chesterfield, Derbyshire three years later. Within a decade this had expanded to several stores called Burton & Burton, and Montague was offering tailored suits and coats at affordable prices. The company made a quarter of all British military uniforms during the Second World War. When his father died in 1952, Raymond took over the Burton & Burton real estate portfolio, which included 14 factories and 616 shops, making him the world's largest "multi-tailor".
TOPSHOP (originally Top Shop) is a British fashion brand for women's clothing, shoes and accessories. It was part of the Arcadia Group, controlled by Sir Philip Green, but went into administration in late 2020 before being purchased by ASOS on 1 February 2021. It now operates via the ASOS website and app, as well as being sold in Nordstrom stores in the US on Nordstrom.com. TOPSHOP previously had around 510 shops worldwide.
In 1955 he moved to London, where he became the head of the women's fashion store Peter Robinson in Oxford Circus, which her father bought soon after the war. He began developing the brand through a series of nationwide sales chains. In 1964, Peter Robinson established the Topshop line in his stores to appeal to younger customers, and in the seventies, he successfully established Topshop as an independent chain.
Topshop Growth
In 1973, the Burton Group seriously expanded its women's clothing division; He divided Topshop by Peter Robinson into Peter Robinson and Topshop. Topshop opened 55 independent stores in two years. In 1978, a third of Burton's operating profits came from Topshop. Burton; also launched TopMan for male customers in the 1970s. Although Topshop struggled to hold its ground in the 1980s, it rose again in the 1990s. in 1994; After nearly three decades of growth, Topshop flagship store opened in Oxford Circus. The store was three floors and quite large. In addition, the brand pioneered online fashion, launching the UK's first online fashion store for Topshop. This transformation is often owed to the introduction of Jabe Shepherdson as brand manager. Thanks to Jabe Shepherdson, the profit of the brand has also increased significantly.
Sir Philip Green Era at Topshop
In 1997 the Burton group broke up and was restructured in the Arcadia group, which later bought other big brands like Miss Selfridge and Wallis. Then, in 2002, Sir Philip Green and his wife bought the Arcadia group and all the stores it had owned until then for £850m.
Green made the brand more known through successful collaborations. He has especially formed lucrative partnerships with Kate Moss and Beyonce. Brand in 2003; As one of the important sponsors of London Fashion Week, it has increased its brand awareness with the stars during the fashion week.
In 2012, Philip Green, with the aim of accelerating Topshop's expansion, especially in the USA; Topshop and 25% of Topman's shares were sold to US-based private equity group Leonard Green and Partners for US$805 million.
Topshop produces clothing, shoes, make-up, and accessories for women. It has produced quality, trendy designed clothes, and accessories at affordable prices. The customer who buys Topshop's products can be defined not by his age, but by his attitude. Sensitive and independent in style, fashion-dependent but not dedicated. Instead, he ditched the rulebook and aimed for a unique look.
Drop from the Peak
According to experts, the coronavirus outbreak was the last straw for Arcadia, which is lacking in investment in digital platforms. Liam Patterson, the founder of online retail consulting firm Bidnamic, said that Arcadia was "resisting innovation and being late to the digital party".
Asos Period
In February 2021, Topshop and Topman were acquired by Asos. Asos CEO stated that he is satisfied with this purchase. On February 1, 2021, ASOS announced that it had acquired the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge, and HIIT brands from management for £265m and paid an additional £65m for existing and pre-order stocks. ASOS will retain 300 employees as part of the deal but has decided not to retain any of the brand's 70 stores and 2,500 employees.