Decision day: River Island’s survival vote set for tomorrow

River Island’s fate will be decided tomorrow as landlords and creditors vote on a radical rescue deal that could determine whether the 76-year-old high street retailer survives or falls into administration.

Without approval from at least 75% of creditors, River Island has warned it will be forced into administration by early September.

"It’s quite a drastic set of rent cuts and store closures. On that basis, I’m expecting quite a few landlords to vote against it. Particularly those affected by rent reductions", one retail property insider told Retail Week.

"That’s a big blow – especially in locations where River Island previously paid a reasonable rent. I imagine there will definitely be dissent, and the vote will be quite divided," the source added.

The court-supervised restructuring plan, which first came to light last week, was drawn up by PwC and is set to be voted on 1 August. It proposes closing 33 stores, slashing rents at a further 71 locations, and writing off tens of millions of pounds in debts. If approved, River Island will receive a £40 million emergency loan from its founding Lewis family through their investment firm, Blue Coast Capital.

The rescue plan includes rent reductions of 25-75% on 71 stores for three years, with 24 of these sites expected to pay no rent at all. Landlords affected include British Land, the Crown Estate and Frasers Group, as well as local councils, many of whom are facing the loss of business rates revenue. River Island is also proposing to return more than 30 leased company vehicles, with associated debts to be written off entirely.

River Island has already confirmed the 33 UK stores that will close by January 2026. The list includes high-profile locations such as Edinburgh's Princes Street, Brighton, Oxford and Norwich.

The crisis at River Island has been building over the past year. In June, the company prepared a formal restructuring plan that would put a significant number of stores and jobs at risk. PwC took over advisory duties from AlixPartners, which had been hired in early 2024 following a £32.3 million pre-tax loss in 2023 and a 19% fall in turnover to £578.1 million.

The company has cited multiple headwinds in recent reports, including rising operational costs, a sharp consumer shift to online shopping and increasing digital competition from ultra-fast fashion players such as Shein.

In its most recent filing on Companies House, River Island acknowledged: "The market for retailing of fashion clothing is fast changing… with increasing competition, especially in the digital space."

To help spearhead its turnaround strategy, River Island has made multiple leadership changes this year. As part of its plans for a "year of reset", it appointed Suzy Slavid, Chief Executive Officer of Wyse London, as its Trading Manager Director in February. This was the same month Ben Lewis rejoined as CEO. He previously held the CEO position at River Island for almost a decade before stepping down in 2019. His uncle, Bernard Lewis, is the founder and owner of River Island.

River Island is one of many retailers navigating tough conditions across the UK's high streets due to economic and regulatory pressures. If River Island’s restructuring plan is rejected, the company has warned it will run out of money by September. The next 24 hours will determine whether the British fashion mainstay can stabilise or become the latest retail casualty.