House of Fraser bought by Mike Ashley

trisher I think it is odd, and we will have to wait and see what he does with H of F assets. I shop in HofF frequently and hope he does not go down the cheap and cheerful road with products. Feel for the people fearing for their job security.

I am not holding my breath for any improvements for shop workers nor for consumers!

We have a HoF in the nearby town which has all the usual concessions from Joseph/Kaliko/ Top Shop so covers arranges of styles and purses. Sport Direct is already on the top floor of the Debenhams..in the same town

Big business & money call the shots and the general public seems to think it is OK to have low pay/uncertain hours for some sectors of society and empty shops on the High St etc. so it will happen!

It said on the news this evening that his ambition has always been to own a chain of department stores, so he may now be doing just that.

I think he will need to go through the portfolio of stores and decide which he thinks he can upgrade and make profitable. At least that is better than the group collapsing completely with all the stores closed and all staff redundant.

House of Fraser stores actually were 'the Harrods of the High Street'. This was long ago when Harrods WAS Harrods and the High Street WAS the High Street. I think that time has passed and we can't go back.

What Monica says.

My first thought was that he would be asset-stripping. I hope I am proved wrong.

I am not sure a string of department stores is a good investment either, given the way in which the high street is slowly closing down, shop by shop, as people choose more and more to shop online. Many stores like John Lewis and Selfridges tend to cater for those who have few worries about income and the price of goods.

Internet shopping has done for a lot of shops and stores in the High St. HOF may need a change.

X posts Day6

It was, Elrel
Didn't they belong to the same group - I am sure Dingles of Plymouth was the same group as Harrods.

I think John Lewis are quite competitive on price Day6

Sad to hear this ,many moons ago we were friends with one of the Fraser family who owned the stores ,he'll be spinning in his grave at what seems to be its fate .It was always the go to shop in Glasgow ,the heart of Buchanan Street .

Oh I can imagine what the NUFC fans are saying about this . Jeez.

He did already own shares in HoF and even more in Debenhams which I suspect will be the next big fall out .

Those department stores seem sadly old fashioned-but-not-in-a-good way now, bit like Grace Brothers. John Lewis seems a bit more competitive, Harrods and Selfridges are full of tourists, not sure many Brits can afford to shop there. Liberty has managed to retain the old world charm but again is a tourist destination. Primark has cornered the “pile it high sell em cheap” end. So not sure what the future holds for H of F and Debenhams.

We forget when we had grocery shops, butchers, fishmongers, greengrocers on the high streets , supermarkets, Then came supermarkets.

Better low pay than no pay trisher, and no I do not think low pay is ok, at least the staff have time to look for other jobs if they want to and if they can find them.

Gilly It’ll be interesting to hear NUFC fans opinions if they’re interviewed before today’s match

I think there’ll be a lot of bleeping!!

It's not just a question of low pay alone Annie I wouldn't trust a word Ashley says about his intentions. With as PECS says Sports Direct on the top floor of Debenhams, it is possible that we will see shops combined and staff made redundant. Interesting as well that apparently he wanted to buy BHS.

Too right there will Squiffy. The man is not in the slightest bit interested in football and rarely even bothers to attend a match. It’s just another part of his investment portfolio . Anyone got a spare £400 million?

True trisher, but there is no solution, if the chain hadn’t been bought it would have closed down.

I’ll check down the back of the sofa Gilly!

I think the fans should boycott season ticket renewals, that might focus his mind?? . . .

Don't think it would impact that much Squiffy the club made profits from transfers. Suppose it's a bit like asset stripping but using footballers!

It wouldn’t trisher my dad is a die hard NUFC season ticket holder . He says the money these clubs make on the gate ( ticket sales) is a drop in the ocean compared with massive amounts raised in sponsorship, TV rights, Sky payments, kit and strip sales etc.

Sadly, I think you're right Gilly and Trisher, I'm just an optimist clutching at straws! Himself is a die-hard fan, too, though not a season ticket holder (we're down south, he's a Geordie and I'm not!) and it upsets me to see how loyal they all are and are just taken for mugs. I can imagine the banter today and really wish we were up there to hear it!

I noticed he's not buying the pension responsibilities. Feel sorry for all new and old employees who have relied on this for their future security. Will the financial authorities pick this up?

Some of the staff have probably worked for the company for years