Topman is a British online-only men's fashion retail brand operated by

ASOS ASOS or Asos may refer to: * Asos, a village in Greece * ASOS (retailer), a UK online fashion store * '' A Storm of Swords'', a book in the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' saga by G. R. R. Martin * Action short of strike, industrial action undertake ...

. Along with its women's clothing counterpart Topshop and the rest of

Arcadia Group Arcadia Group Ltd (formerly Arcadia Group plc and, until 1998, Burton Group plc) was a British multinational retailing company headquartered in London, England. It was best known for being the previous parent company of British Home Stores (B ...

, Topman went into

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

in late 2020. All high street stores subsequently closed and the brand was purchased by

on 1 February 2021, relaunching as an online-only retailer.

History

It was founded by Burton Group (later renamed

) in 1978. In 2001, Topman's brand director, David Shepherd, was considered to have " done a Ratner" when he referred to his core clientele as "Football hooligans or whatever" and said that "Very few of our customers have to wear suits to work. They'll be for his first interview or court case". In May 2019, the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

and ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'' both reported that, after its parent company Arcadia Group filed for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

, Topshop would close all 11 of its U.S. stores, including Topman. Apparel would be distributed digitally and through other wholesale partners, such as Nordstrom. In the UK, Arcadia Group went into

at 8pm GMT on 30 November 2020. On 25 January 2021,

said it was in "exclusive" talks to buy Arcadia's Topshop, Topman,

Miss Selfridge Miss Selfridge is a British fashion brand and former high street store chain which began as the young fashion section of Selfridges department store in London in 1966. It was part of the Arcadia Group, controlled by Sir Philip Green, which we ...

and HIIT brands out of administration, though it only wanted the brands, not the shops. A consortium including

Next NeXT, Inc. (later NeXT Computer, Inc. and NeXT Software, Inc.) was an American technology company headquartered in Redwood City, California that specialized in computer workstations for higher education and business markets, and later develope ...

had earlier dropped a bid to buy Topshop and Topman; interest in Arcadia operations had also been expressed by Mike Ashley's

Frasers Group Frasers Group plc (formerly known as Sports Direct International plc) is a British retail, sport and intellectual property group, named after its ownership of the department store chain House of Fraser. The company is best known for trading pr ...

, a consortium including JD Sports, and online retailer

Boohoo Boo hoo may refer to the sound of someone crying. Boo hoo may also refer to: * ''Boo Hoo'', a 2002 album by musician Voltaire * "Boo-Hoo", a 1937 hit song recorded by Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians * Boo Hoo the Bear, the mascot of Queen's ...

. On 1 February 2021, ASOS announced it had acquired the four Arcadia brands out of administration for £265 million, paying an additional £65 million for current and pre-ordered stock. ASOS will keep 300 employees on as part of the deal but will not keep any of the brands' 70 stores, putting 2,500 jobs at risk. They plan to relaunch in May 2021. On the 5 September 2024, ASOS announced that it sold a 75% stake of Topshop & Topman to the Danish company Bestseller. It was announced that the Topshop & Topman websites would relaunch within 6 months of the deal with Bestseller, as well it was hinted that the brands could return to the high street with stores, the chief executive of ASOS commented "We might open stores. We will consider it for sure but we have no specific agreement to open a certain number".

Products

Topman was nominated for the 'Menswear Design of the Year' award by the British Fashion Council, winner of 'Best Fashion Retailer' at the ''

Maxim Maxim or Maksim may refer to: Entertainment *Maxim (magazine), ''Maxim'' (magazine), an international men's magazine ** Maxim (Australia), ''Maxim'' (Australia), the Australian edition ** Maxim (India), ''Maxim'' (India), the Indian edition *Maxim ...

'' Style Awards for 2005 and winner of 'Best High Street Retailer' at the 2007 '' FHM'' Fashion and Grooming awards. In 2008, Topman collaborated with new label The Look Presents, the creation of rock-fashion author Paul Gorman and Soho boutique owner, Max Karie, to launch 'the Look Presents'. In 2011, Topman worked closely with

Teenage Cancer Trust Teenage Cancer Trust is a cancer care and support charity in the UK that exists to improve the cancer experience of young people aged 13–24. Founded in 1990, the charity's key service is providing specialist teenage units in NHS hospitals. It ...

. The company worked in collaboration with children from the charity to produce a range of sunglasses designed by them whilst supporting the 'Rock your Shades' campaign in May 2011.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
2021 disestablishments in the United Kingdom 2021 disestablishments in England 2021 mergers and acquisitions Clothing retailers of the United Kingdom Retail companies disestablished in 2021 Retail companies established in 1978 Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom Companies that have filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy 1978 establishments in the United Kingdom