Topshop's downfall and the end of the 'high street' dream The brand symbol of the 2000s Brit aesthetics is on the brink of collapse

Topshop is the latest name to be added to the long list of brands irreparably affected by the pandemic, especially those belonging to the fast fashion sector. Arcadia Group, the parent company of the brand founded and led by Philip Green, who also owns Topman, Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins, Evans and Burton, among others, entered what is defined administration, that is, was commissioner last Monday. The company's brands will continue to operate while waiting for a buyer and Deloitte company will oversee this transition period.

This is certainly not sudden and unexpected news, because like other brands of the industry, first of all, H&M, Topshop was in dire straits even before the pandemic. In some ways, however, that of Topshop represents an even more striking and dramatic decline, because with it also ends the real golden moment of high street fashion, which had filled the gap between cheaper fast fashion and prêt-à-porter, finding an intermediate position that would allow a large mass of consumers to approach fashion with cool and successful products. Especially since the beginning of the 2000s and for the following decade, Topshop was the coolest brand in the UK - and consequently the world: it showed twice a year during London Fashion Week with the Topshop Unique line (the latest show was held in 2017); the brand used to host exclusive parties and events with the most prominent celebs on the scene, from Alexa Chung to Cara Delevigne; Kate Moss signed an ongoing collection with Topshop and the brand had created capsules with emerging designers at the time, such as Christopher Kane and JW Anderson. 

In any case, the administration puts more than 13 thousand jobs at risk along with the possible closure of 400 stores. However, it seems that there would already be potential buyers, particularly interested in Topshop and Topman, the brands with the strongest heritage and still with great recognition, which could be completely distorted and restructured after an acquisition. Among the interested buyers, there would be the same Boohoo Group, the giant of the UK online fast fashion, which in some ways represents the 2.0 evolution of the plans and aesthetics of Topshop. According to many analysts, if Topshop and all the brands in the group fail to avoid bankruptcy, Arcadia would become the largest case of corporate collapse in Britain at the time of the pandemic.