Debenhams shakes up Designers line-up

New Debenhams boss Sergio Bucher has begun a shake-up of its longest-standing relationships for its Designers at Debenhams ranges.

Veteran designer Betty Jackson, who established her own label in 1986, has been dropped from the line-up while Jeff Banks, who rose to prominence in the 80s fronting BBC's The Clothes Show, has had his line shrunk to just suits and shirting.

It is understood that no decision have yet been made on the other veteran British designers who design for the department store, such as John Rocha, Ben de Lisi and Jasper Conran, according to the Evening Standard.

Bucher joined Debenhams from Amazon in October, succeeding Michael Sharp, and it is believed he wants to enlist some new designers to freshen up the offer. Additional designers in the range, that blazed a trail for designer/high street tie-ups when it launched in 1993, include Matthew Williamson, Henry Holland and Julien Macdonald. Giles Deacon launched his first collection for the store last year.

The retailer has been implementing a strategy to diversify and decrease its reliance on clothing, such as investing in beauty, casual dining and gifting. Non-clothing now accounts for more than half its sales.

Since Debenhams first launched its Designers At collections other high street brands have engaged in, arguably higher profile relationships with high end designers, such as Topshop and, most successfully, H&M. The latter's collaborations are among the most hotly anticipated releases of the year with this year's Kenzo collection being no exception.

H&M's approach, however, is to collaborate on one-off collections rather than having long-standing relationships with designers, which is why it can attract high profile international designers, such as Karl Lagerfeld, Alexander Wang and Isabel Marant.