JD Sports did not pay any rents or service charges across its store estate for the second quarter of the year and is in discussions with its landlords about the rents due in June.
A spokesman for the retailer confirmed JD Sports did not pay any of its quarterly rents or service charges across its approximately 390-strong store estate in the UK and Ireland on the due date last Wednesday.
He said the fashion retailer was in discussions with landlords about rents ahead of the next quarterly due date on June 24.
The business made the decision to close all of its stores across the UK, Europe and the USA due to the coronavirus outbreak on March 24. It said while it would continue to trade from its ecommerce site, the store closures would have a “significant impact” on its financial outlook.
One property source said the retailer had been in more or less constant contact with landlords on the issue, but still said it would come as a blow to many, particularly larger institutional landlords.
The move by JD Sports follows similar refusals to pay rents on closed stores taken by many other retailers including Arcadia and Kingfisher. Other brands such as Debenhams, Superdry, Primark and New Look also plan to seek rent holidays of varying lengths.
Shopping centre owners such as Intu and Hammerson have been under intense pressure caused by the coronavirus pandemic, combined with estate valuations already being hammered by retail administrations and the CVAs that many struggling brands undertook last year.
Intu said it would be seeking access to the UK government’s £330bn support package. Hammerson has said that it will continue to look at shopping centre disposals to help balance the books.
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