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T. J. Hughes

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T. J. Hughes
Company typePrivate
IndustryRetail
GenreDepartment Store
Founded1912; 112 years ago (1912)[1]
FounderThomas J Hughes
HeadquartersLiverpool
Number of locations
15 (2024)
ProductsHome furnishing, menswear, women's wear, perfume, electricals, toys
OwnerLewis's Home Retail Ltd
Websitetjhughes.co.uk

T. J. Hughes, registered and styled as TJ Hughes, is a British discount department store brand which first emerged in Liverpool in 1912.

Thomas John Hughes started the business on Liverpool's London Road after an apprenticeship with Owen Owen, eventually partnering with Owen Owen in 1925, which allowed him to expand the store into a department store. The business grew under Owen Owen's ownership until it was sold in 1991. In the 1990s and 2000s, TJ Hughes expanded significantly by acquiring locations from other retailers and continued to grow into the 2010s, including filling vacancies left by Woolworths. However, in March 2011, the company was sold to turnaround firm Endless LLP after financial struggles, including the loss of credit insurance for suppliers.

Throughout that timeline, the business grew to become a national chain with 57 stores but shrank to just six locations after entering administration in 2011. In recent years, the chain has opened and closed various sites and, as of 2024, trades from 15 stores as well as online.[2]

History

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TJ Hughes shop in Liverpool

Establishment

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Thomas John Hughes set up a small shop on Liverpool's London Road after an apprenticeship at fellow drapery firm Owen Owen. The store had a few assistants and Hughes was the main shopkeeper, overseeing everything within the business.

In 1925 Owen Owen saw the need to move out of their Audley House site on London Road into the new centre of Liverpool at Clayton Square.[3] The then chairman of Owen Owen, Duncan Norman, went to see the TJ Hughes shop. Norman was so impressed that he agreed to let Hughes run and expand his business in Audley House for part ownership of the business under Owen Owen. By now a department store, TJ Hughes was gradually expanded by the Owen Owen group until being sold in 1991.

TJ Hughes was floated on the London Stock Exchange in May 1992[3] before being acquired by JJB Sports in March 2002 for £42 million. In November 2003, the company was sold again in a £56 million buyout backed by PPM Capital.[4]

During the 1990s and 2000s, TJ Hughes took over a number of premises formerly occupied by other retailers including Owen Owen (Kidderminster and Wolverhampton), Allders (Ipswich), C&A (Glasgow, Romford and Hull), House of Fraser (Sheffield and Eastbourne) and various Co-operative Group stores (Warrington, Bradford, Doncaster and Crawley). From 2009, expansion picked up again with the addition of a further seven stores by early 2011. A number of these openings were in locations left vacant by Woolworths which had collapsed in late 2008.

In March 2011, TJ Hughes was sold to turnaround specialist Endless LLP for an undisclosed sum.[3] Endless bought TJ Hughes from Silverfleet Capital, who had overseen growth of around twenty stores since taking control of the firm in 2003.[5] The sale followed reports that TJ Hughes had been hit by the withdrawal of credit insurance for its suppliers after a battle to secure working capital.

2011 Administration

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On 27 June 2011, TJ Hughes Limited announced that it intended to go into administration, putting 4,000 jobs at risk. TJ Hughes officially entered administration on Thursday 30 June 2011, with Ernst & Young appointed as administrators.[6] The company launched a closing down sale in a bid to reduce stock levels.[7]

A closed branch of TJ Hughes in Bradford.

Ernst & Young said it hoped to sell the company as a going concern, saying it was "very much business as usual" but added that it could be difficult to sell all of the stores owing to the previous trading history of TJ Hughes.[citation needed] There were reports of a number of prospective buyers, including Primark.[8]

On 7 July 2011, GA Europe acquired Endless’ secured debt due from TJ Hughes and announced plans to work with administrators Ernst & Young to liquidate stock[9] from the retail chain’s 57 stores.[10]

On 22 July, Ernst & Young announced the company's Liverpool distribution centre would close, making 116 employees redundant.[11]

On 1 August, Lewis Home Retail, a company associated with Speke based Benross Group, acquired the TJ Hughes brand and website together with the flagship Liverpool store as well as the Eastbourne, Glasgow and Sheffield locations. This was shortly followed by the Newcastle and Widnes stores, bringing the total saved to six.[12][13]

Former TJ Hughes shop in Scunthorpe

On 4 August, Ernst & Young announced the closure of the first twenty two unsold TJ Hughes stores throughout the United Kingdom.[14] Store closures began on 10 August, with Shrewsbury closing first.[15]

Ernst & Young announced on 20 August that the remainder of the 51 unsold TJ Hughes stores would close their doors by 31 August 2011.

Post-2011

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Since emerging from administration of the legacy company in 2011, TJ Hughes has operated a number of different stores. The Company stated in 2015 that it may seek to open as many as 55 stores in total,[16] by 2019 reaching 29, including several in locations formerly occupied by BHS and Toys-R-Us. By early 2020 however, seven stores had closed, including three as a result of administration.[17] This was followed by a further nine store closures in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2023, the company opened its first new location in four years (Corby[18]) and announced a long-awaited move from its original London Road Liverpool store to a new Central Liverpool location.[19]

Several store closures have related to lease expiry or urban regeneration, with a number closing without replacement in the same town/city (e.g. Widnes), others relocating immediately to nearby premises (e.g. St Helens), and some re-emerging in new premises several years after closure (e.g. Middlesbrough).

Current Stores

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Location History
Bootle Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2015[16]
Bury Opened 2015[20]
Clydebank Opened 2019[21]
Corby Legacy store closed 2011; new location opened 2023[22]
Cumbernauld Opened 2019[23]
Durham Opened 2019[24]
Glasgow Legacy store relocated in 2021[25]
Hartlepool Opened 2014[26]
Liverpool Legacy flagship store relocated 2023[27]
Maidstone Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2016[28]
Middlesbrough Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2012;[29] closed 2021; new location opened 2024[30]
Newcastle Legacy store[31]
Preston Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2016[32]
St Helens Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2016;[33][34] relocated 2023[35]
Warrington Legacy store closed 2011; new location opened 2024[36]
Wolverhampton Legacy store closed 2011; new location due to open in 2024.

Former Stores

[edit]
Location History
Belfast Legacy store closed 2011
Birkenhead Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2012;[37] closed 2021[38]
Blackburn Legacy store closed 2007; new location opening 2025[39]
Blackpool Legacy store closed 2011
Bolton Legacy store closed 2011
Boscombe Legacy store closed 2011
Bradford Legacy store closed 2011; new location opened 2019; closed 2020
Bristol Legacy store closed 2011
Burnley Legacy store closed 2011
Cannock Opened 2012; closed 2019
Chelmsford (Home) Opened 2016; closed 2020[40]
Chester Legacy store closed 2011
Chesterfield Opened 2017; closed 2020[41]
Coventry Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2013;[42] closed during 2020-2022[43]
Crawley Legacy store closed 2011
Derby Legacy store closed 2011
Doncaster Legacy store closed 2011
Dumfries Legacy store closed 2011
Dundee Legacy store closed 2011; new location opened 2018; closed 2021[44]
East Kilbride Opened 2018;[45] closed by end 2022
Eastbourne Legacy store closed 2019[46]
Ellesmere Port Legacy store closed 2011
Hanley Legacy store closed 2011
Hull Legacy store closed 2011
Ipswitch Legacy store closed 2011
Kettering Legacy store closed 2011
Kidderminster Legacy store closed 2011
King's Lynn Legacy store closed 2011
Lichfield Legacy store closed 2011
Livingston (Home) Opened 2018; closed by end 2022
Macclesfield Legacy store closed 2011
Newport Legacy store closed 2011
Nuneaton Legacy store closed 2011; new location opened 2017; closed 2020[47]
Oldham Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2015;[16] closed during 2020-2021[48]
Plymouth Legacy store closed 2011
Redditch Legacy store closed 2011
Rochdale Legacy store closed 2011
Romford Legacy store closed 2011
Salford Legacy store closed 2011
Scunthorpe Legacy store closed 2011
Sheffield Legacy store relocated in 2013; closed 2020[49]
Shrewsbury Legacy store closed 2011
Southend Legacy store closed 2011
Stretford Legacy store closed 2011; re-opened 2014;[50] closed by end 2017[51]
Sunderland Legacy store closed 2011
Sutton Legacy store closed 2011
Walsall Legacy store closed 2011; new location opened 2015[16] closed 2019[52]
Watford Legacy store closed 2011
Weston super-Mare Legacy store closed 2011
Widnes Legacy store closed 2024[53]
Wolverhampton Legacy store closed 2011: new store due to open in 2024 in former Wilko store.
Wrexham Legacy store closed 2011

Sales strategy

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Former TJ Hughes shop in Sheffield

In December 2005, TJ Hughes launched an online store through eBay, with eBay claiming that the retailer was the first in the United Kingdom to sell its main products through the auction site. The store launched with 110 lines including DVD players, digital cameras and perfumes. TJ Hughes said its eBay shop represented an opportunity to increase sales and brand awareness.[54]

One of the retailer's advertising tactics was to feature relatives of famous celebrities in their advertisements. For example, they used former Manchester United F.C. player Wayne Rooney's brother Graeme Rooney as part of an advertising campaign.[55]

During 2007, the company unveiled its largest advertising campaign to date. This featured celebrities’ family members, with recruits to the campaign including Carol Vorderman’s mother, Jonathan Ross’s mother and Robbie Williams’ father. The aim of the somewhat unusual series of ads was apparently to eschew passing on the costs of celebrity endorsement to customers, which TJ Hughes claims is the case for a number of its competitors.

Online

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TJ Hughes was a late runner in the e-commerce era, establishing an information website for investors and customers in 1999/2000. Although a new site was launched in 2004, this continued to offer only basic information such as current offers and store locations. In spite of this, the company reported that this site received some 17,000 hits a month, which prompted them to look at the introduction of e commerce.

This was introduced on a trial basis in the run up to Christmas 2005, and offered 150 seasonal gifts and homewares lines.

An encouraging performance resulted in the trial being extended, with the company subsequently increasing the range of merchandise offered online, and by 2011 the company offered an extensive range of products on its website. The TJ Hughes website, designed by local digital agency YOMA,[56] was ranked 108,004 worldwide and 5,237 in the United Kingdom according to Alexa.[57]

Financial success

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TJ Hughes saw gross profits soar almost 50% a year, from £3.6m in 2003, increasing to £7.9m in 2004[58] with a jump to £12m in 2006.[59] Throughout 2007, TJ Hughes's pre-tax profits were £5.1 million in the year to 26 January, up from £1.2 million the year before. Operating profit soared 299 per cent to £2.9 million.[60]

In January 2010, accounts showed pre-tax profits increased by more than £1.5m to £6.8m. That was achieved on sales of £266.7m, an annualised rise of 4%. Although the last full financial year before Ms Tennant was appointed, to January 2007, showed pre tax profits of £1.2m, they rose to £5.1m in the year to January 2008. This was followed by profits of £5.3m the following year.

Competition

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The demise of Woolworths was seen to create significant opportunities in the homewares market, although other mixed goods discounters such as B&M and Wilko, which have some overlap in terms of product offer, have also been expanding rapidly in a bid to gain some of this market share both on the high street and increasingly in out of town locations.[original research?] This is believed to be part of the reason as to why T. J. Hughes entered administration.[61]

American retailer TJ Maxx, which also sells discounted clothing and housewares, modified its name to TK Maxx to avoid confusion with T. J. Hughes when it opened its first British store in 1994. It subsequently used the TK Maxx name for its other European operations.[62]

References

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  1. ^ "About Us". T. J. Hughes. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  2. ^ "Find your nearest TJ Hughes store".
  3. ^ a b c "My grandad's store and the end of the high street". The Guardian. 2 July 2011.
  4. ^ Fletcher, Richard (15 November 2003). "PPM sells Oasis as it grabs TJ Hughes in £55m deal". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  5. ^ "Management team buys Liverpool retailer TJ Hughes with backing from turnaround specialist Endless". liverpoolecho. 25 March 2011. Retrieved 25 March 2011.
  6. ^ "Discount store TJ Hughes now in the hands of administrators". The Guardian. 30 June 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  7. ^ "TJ Hughes Launches Quick-Fire Sale". TJ Hughes. 12 July 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
  8. ^ "TJ Hughes stock sell-off announced by administrator". BBC News. 7 July 2011. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  9. ^ "Debt due from TJ Hughes". bheta. 7 July 2011. Archived from the original on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  10. ^ "TJ Hughes stock sell-off announced by administrator". BBC News. 7 July 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  11. ^ "TJ Hughes warehouse closes making 116 redundant". Liverpool Echo. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  12. ^ "Administrators close last of TJ Hughes' stores". housewareslive. 20 August 2011. Archived from the original on 12 September 2011. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  13. ^ "Newcastle's TJ Hughes is saved – but Middlesbrough's is to close within days". Soult's Retail View. 13 August 2011.
  14. ^ "TJ Hughes sheds 1,000 jobs as 22 stores close". Retail Gazette. 4 August 2011. Archived from the original on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
  15. ^ "TJ Hughes sets closure dates for 22 stores next week". BBC News. 4 August 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
  16. ^ a b c d "Liverpool retailer TJ Hughes to create 150 jobs at three new stores - including one in Bootle". Liverpool Echo. 20 July 2015.
  17. ^ "150 jobs secured as four department stores saved - but 50 jobs lost with the closure of five branches". 5 March 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  18. ^ "Shoppers delighted as TJ Hughes re-opens in Corby". 11 May 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  19. ^ "TJ Hughes moving into former H&M store in city centre". 22 August 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  20. ^ "TJ Hughes expands high street presence with new Bury store". Manchester Evening News. 19 March 2015.
  21. ^ "TJ Hughes giving away FREE vouchers to celebrate East Kilbride shop opening". The Scottish Sun. 6 November 2018. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  22. ^ Ryder, Elliott (17 August 2023). "TJ Hughes confirms new Liverpool city centre location". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  23. ^ "TJ Hughes all set to open in Cumbernauld".
  24. ^ Lindsay, Kali (4 August 2019). "The shops opened, closed and coming to Durham city centre". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  25. ^ "TJ Hughes opening new 36,000ft Glasgow store in former BHS this month". The Scottish Sun. 21 October 2021. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  26. ^ "TJ Hughes store chain bringing 70 new jobs to Hartlepool". Hartlepool Mail. 12 August 2014.
  27. ^ Ryder, Elliott (17 August 2023). "TJ Hughes confirms new Liverpool city centre location". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  28. ^ McConnell, Ed (13 March 2016). "Maidstone: TJ Hughes returns to The Mall Maidstone". Kent Online. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  29. ^ "Middlesbrough's TJ Hughes confirms 3 October reopening date – with Birkenhead to follow". Soult's Retail View. 27 September 2012.
  30. ^ Banks, Georgia (18 September 2024). "TJ Hughes confirms opening date of Cleveland Centre store". Teesside Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  31. ^ Laing, Iain (11 August 2011). "Jobs saved as TJ Hughes Newcastle gets new owner". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  32. ^ "Jobs boost as discount shop returns to Preston shopping centre". Lancashire Evening Post. 14 September 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  33. ^ "TJ Hughes in St Helens: job adverts show popular store is coming back". Liverpool Echo. 15 January 2016.
  34. ^ "TJ Hughes reveals opening date of new St Helens store". 24 May 2016.
  35. ^ Belger, Tom (5 April 2016). "TJ Hughes reveals plans for new store". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  36. ^ Skentelbery, Gary (30 September 2024). "TJ Hughes to return to Warrington in former Debenhams store". Warrington Worldwide. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  37. ^ "TJ Hughes store reopens in Birkenhead". BBC News. 24 October 2012.
  38. ^ Weston, Alan (30 April 2021). "Mystery surrounds closure of Birkenhead's TJ Hughes store". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  39. ^ "Major retailer announced as moving into former Debenhams town centre site". Lancashire Telegraph. 13 November 2024. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  40. ^ Pegden, Tom (5 March 2020). "150 jobs saved with sale of four TJ Hughes Outlet stores". Business Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  41. ^ "Chesterfield shoppers 'saddened' at TJ Hughes closure". Derbyshire Live. 28 February 2020. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  42. ^ "TJ TJ Hughes to reopen at its old site in Coventry's Lower Precinct". Coventry Telegraph. 18 October 2013.
  43. ^ Kaur, Jaspreet (3 August 2023). "Artwork brightens up store in Lower Precinct that's been empty for a decade". Coventry Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  44. ^ Kelly, Lesley-Anne (26 June 2023). "Dundee shopping centres: Track the empty and occupied units". The Courier. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  45. ^ "TJ Hughes giving away FREE vouchers to celebrate East Kilbride shop opening". The Scottish Sun. 6 November 2018. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  46. ^ "TJ Hughes closing down in Eastbourne". 26 April 2019.
  47. ^ Harrison, Claire (27 September 2022). "New tenant for Nuneaton's former TJ Hughes store confirmed". Coventry Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  48. ^ Carter, Gemma (27 February 2023). "T J Hughes demolition makes way for vibrant new town centre". Saddleworth Independent. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  49. ^ Jones, Craig (20 February 2020). "Sheffield city centre department store announces closure". Yorkshire Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  50. ^ "TJ Hughes to reopen in Stretford Mall, creating 40 new jobs". Messenger. 8 October 2014.
  51. ^ Day, Rebecca (2 August 2018). "End of an era as work starts on demolishing part of Stretford Mall". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  52. ^ Thandi, Gurdip (18 September 2019). "Walsall shopping centre has plummeted in value, critics claim". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  53. ^ "TJ Hughes issues statement confirming why Widnes store has closed". Runcorn and Widnes World. 25 September 2024. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  54. ^ "TJ Hughes opens eBay shop". Telecomworldwire. 23 December 2005. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  55. ^ TJ Hughes sign Graham Rooney for advertising
  56. ^ "TJ Hughes unveils e-commerce site with YOMA". The Drum. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
  57. ^ "Tjhughes.co.uk Site Info". Alexa Inc. 31 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 May 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
  58. ^ T J Hughes at Buyout Track
  59. ^ T J Hughes at Profit Track [dead link‍]
  60. ^ "TJ Hughes grows again after fourfold profit rise". Retail Week. 31 July 2008. Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  61. ^ "TJ Hughes Enters Administration". The Daily Telegraph. 27 June 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  62. ^ Joachim Zentes; Dirk. Morschett; Hanna Schramm-Klein (2011). Strategic Retail Management: Text and International Cases. Gabler Verlag. ISBN 9783834967404.
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