Sports Direct shutters Firetrap head office

By

Olivier Guyot

Published
Dec 9, 2012

In less than a year, the management of Sports Direct has come to a decision on Firetrap and it is a radical one. The British group, which took over the brand’s wholesale business last March, is closing the brand’s head office and eliminating 150 of Firetrap’s 170 positions.

The process will be completed by the end of January, according to the British press and confirmed by our own sources. Only a dozen people will join the Sports Direct teams. According to FashionMag’s own sources, no official announcement has been made by Sports Direct, who are keeping very quiet.

Since the takeover, the brand has suffered a further decline of interest from retailers. Drapers reports that since November 1, Sports Direct had been selling Firetrap products far below the brand’s wholesale prices both on its website and in its stores, upsetting multi-brand retailers.

The wholesale business is expected to completely stop in January. However, this decision does not mean the end of the brand which was created in 1993 and has enjoyed great success in the past ten years. Sports Direct could continue to sell Firetrap exclusively through its own retail network.