Weeks after a private equity firm bought UK shirtmaker TM Lewin with plans to restructure it, the brand recently announced it will close all 66 of its shops in the country, rendering 600 workers jobless. It will take all its sales online to reduce costs. All its stores closed when the lockdown started, but none reopened when restrictions were eased in June.
Founded in Panton Street, London, in 1898, TM Lewin sells shirts and suits.Weeks after a private equity firm bought UK shirtmaker TM Lewin with plans to restructure it, the brand recently announced it will close all 66 of its shops in the country, rendering 600 workers jobless. It will take all its sales online to reduce costs. All its stores closed when the lockdown started, but none reopened when restrictions were eased in June.#
Torque Brands, a subsidiary of Stonebridge Private Equity that bought the business in May, recently said it had struck a deal to avoid administration.
"The Torque team has worked to assess all available avenues for the business model going forwards, but having done so, has formed the view that TM Lewin is no longer a viable going concern in its current format," it said.
"The decision to significantly reduce the scale of the business in order to preserve its future will regrettably result in job losses at TM Lewin, as a direct result of the closing of the store network as we right-size the business," Torque Brands was quoted as saying by British media reports.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)