Peter Alexander to exit UK market after closing all three stores
Australian sleepwear and lifestyle brand Peter Alexander is exiting the UK market, with its three stores having now closed, while its dedicated e-commerce website is due to shut down in the coming weeks.
The brand has now closed its stores at Bluewater in Kent, Westfield Stratford City and Westfield London in White City, although customers can still order pyjamas through its Australian website, which will offer shipping to the UK.
In a trading update published by parent company Premier Investments, the company noted "sustained difficult trading conditions" and the "continued negative outlook for the United Kingdom economy" as reasons for the UK exit of its Peter Alexander brand.
The parent company highlighted that it was now actively exploring international wholesale opportunities for the sleepwear brand, and was looking to expand its store estate in Australia and New Zealand with five new stores planned for in 2027, including a new flagship in Sydney.
Peter Alexander entered the UK market in 2024
Peter Alexander entered the UK online in October 2024 before opening its three stores in November. At the time, the brand operated about 135 locations across Australia and New Zealand.
The stores carried colourful sleepwear alongside candles, slippers, gift products and accessories for dogs. Around 20% of the wider assortment was based on licensing partnerships, with UK ranges featuring properties including Wicked, Winnie the Pooh and Paddington Bear.
In an interview with TheIndustry.fashion shortly after the launch, founder and Creative Director Peter Alexander said the company intended to spend its first year learning about British demand before committing to further expansion.
“It’s going to take a good 12 months to figure out what the UK is attracted to, what fabrics, what prints, whether they need separate designs, I’m going to learn a lot. I’m not coming here knowing everything, I have to learn,” he said.
Alexander regarded service and sensory presentation as central to the physical format. “A store should not be a place where you just go, buy one thing and walk out,” he told TheIndustry.fashion in 2024.
He also shared that the business was considering opening another 10 stores the following year, but stressed that none had been approved at the time.
At that point in time, the UK had been identified as the brand's strongest potential market outside Australia and New Zealand.
Speaking on the decision to now shut down the brand's UK presence, the Chairman of the brand's parent company, Solomon Lew, noted that Peter Alexander was “one of Australia’s and New Zealand’s most loved brands" and that "the decision to close our UK stores allows us to concentrate our investment where the brand is performing strongly."
He added: “Our entry to the UK market was phased to allow us to test market response. Premier has strict store profitability and return hurdles and we allocate capital prudently on behalf of our shareholders. We have decided to channel our growth capital for Peter Alexander into our Australia and New Zealand markets, online and potentially capital-light wholesale which we continue to explore with global partners.
