A businessman banned from being a company director is involved in a new department store business.

Entrepreneur Ted Ward is involved with 15:17, which is taking premises formerly occupied by retailers such as Debenhams and House of Fraser, the Sunday Times reported.

Ward is behind the business, which rents premises before sub-letting space to occupants such as fashion brands and cafes.

15:17 is owned by a friend of Ward’s, Mercier Mainwaring. He employs Ward as a property advisor. However, the Sunday Times reported that emails suggested Ward was managing aspects such as recruitment and supplier relationships.

Ward was disqualified as a director for 12 years in 2010, but subsequently opened a shop under a false name and sub-let space to others.

Mega Mart St Helens collapsed two years after its opening in 2012. Another store business, Lewis’s Southport, also failed after less than a year.

15:17 opened in a former BHS branch in Ayr last year and is expected to open in a former Debenhams store in Kirkcaldy and a former House of Fraser branch in Grimsby.

A former 15:17 employee has launched an online petition alleging the non-payment of wages and that pension contributions have not been invested – claims that Mainwaring rejects.

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