Sports Direct plans to open a flagship Flannels store on Oxford Street. We take a closer look at the luxury fashion brand.

  • Flannels currently has eight stores in various UK cities including Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool.
  • Sports Direct acquired a 51% stake in Flannels in 2012. It was loss-making at the time and had undergone a CVA. 
  • The flagship on Oxford Street is 20,000 sq ft and will be the fashion retailer’s first London outlet.
  • In February, the luxury fashion retailer opened its first new store since 2011 in a 20,000 sq ft former Sports Direct outlet in Plymouth.
  • The retailer also plans to open new stores in Swindon and Newport later this year.
  • Flannels reported turnover of £22.7m for the year to April 2014, up from £19.6m the year before, but made a loss of £1.5m.
  • It was founded in 1976 as a menswear retailer by Neil Prosser, whose mission was to introduce major UK and international designers to the North West of England.
  • The retailer now sells both menswear and womenswear and luxury designers including Gucci, Jimmy Choo and Dolce & Gabbana.
  • Flannels launched its website, Flannels.com, in 2007 and added a mobile site in 2012.
  • Prosser has a 49% stake in the business and is currently its managing director.
  • The fashion retailer has a presence on various social media platforms, with 18,800 and 20,400 followers on Twitter and Instagram respectively.