Radley stores likely to close as Gordon Brothers wins race to buy brand

Radley London is the latest distressed UK brand that looks set to be taken over in a pre-pack administration deal and also the latest one to be on the verge of closing its stores.

A report on Sky News on Tuesday said Gordon Bothers — the former owner of Laura Ashley and current owner of Poundland — is  about to sign a deal to take over the business. Neither Gordon nor Radley have commented on the news.

Reports earlier this month had said that Next, which recently acquired Russell & Bromley, was also looking to buy Radley, a premium leathergoods brand.

Although the deal hasn’t been announced yet, Sky said it had learnt that Gordon Brothers could strike an agreement as early as Tuesday (so it may have already happened with an announcement imminent) and was lining up restructuring firm FTI Consulting as administrator for completion of a pre-pack administration sale.

The sources also said that the store chain is unlikely to be included in the sale that is focused on the brand and intellectual property.

Radley has been owned for the past decade by private equity firm Freshstream but has been operating in challenging markets. The business made a loss of £2.2 million in the year to April 2025 against a tough UK backdrop. It also struggled in the US and surrendered several store leases there early as it retreated from physical retail in that country.