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* Boohoo buys Debenhams brand for 55 mln stg
* Deal does not include stores or staff
* Debenhams stores to close permanently
* ASOS in exclusive talks to buy Topshop and Topman
* Boohoo shares up 4.3%, ASOS up 3.7%
(Adds detail, shares)
By James Davey
LONDON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Britain's two biggest online
fashion retailers Boohoo and ASOS have moved
to buy the brands of collapsed high street giants Debenhams and
Arcadia, underlining how the COVID-19 pandemic has turbocharged
growth in digital sales.
Boohoo on Monday acquired the Debenhams brand and other
business assets, including all its in-house brands and websites
for 55 million pounds ($75.4 million).
But the deal with Debenhams' administrators, FRP Advisory,
does not include any of the chain's 124 stores or safeguard
jobs.
The 243-year-old Debenhams has been in administration since
April and last month FRP said it was starting a liquidation
process, putting 12,000 jobs at risk.
Debenhams' stores are closed because of pandemic lockdowns,
but once able to reopen FRP will conduct a stock liquidation
before closing the sites permanently, the administrators said.
"The acquisition of the Debenhams brand is an important
development for the group as we seek to capture incremental
growth opportunities arising from the accelerating shift to
online retail," said Boohoo Chief Executive John Lyttle, adding
that the deal will enable it to grow into new categories
including beauty, sport and homewares.
Shares in Boohoo were up 4.3% at 0830 GMT.
Meanwhile, ASOS said it was in exclusive talks with the
administrators of Philip Green's fallen Arcadia group over the
acquisition of the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT
brands.
Arcadia collapsed into administration in November, putting
more than 13,000 jobs at risk.
"The board believes this would represent a compelling
opportunity to acquire strong brands that resonate well with its
customer base," ASOS said, adding that any deal would be funded
from cash reserves.
However, it cautioned that there was no certainty a deal
would be sealed.
Sky News on Saturday reported that ASOS could pay more than
250 million pounds for the Topshop brand.
Next pulled out of the contest on Thursday, saying
it did not want to overpay.
Shares in ASOS were up 3.7%, extending year-on-year gains to
56%.
($1 = 0.7294 pounds)
(Reporting by James Davey
Additional reporting by Paul Sandle
Editing by Kate Holton and David Goodman)
