Robinsons to close Heeren store on Dec 16; Marks & Spencer to exit Raffles City

Singapore

AS Robinsons winds up in Singapore, its flagship store at The Heeren will close on Dec 16. The Raffles City Shopping Centre outlet of its sister brand Marks & Spencer will close on Dec 31.

The department store's liquidators told The Business Times (BT) this, following notice of Marks & Spencer's moving out sales at Raffles City on Thursday.

Marks & Spencer had put out a newspaper advertisement to inform the public that it was exiting the shopping mall after 34 years as a tenant. Its lease there is signed under Robinsons.

Robinsons' liquidators clarified, however, that they are still in talks with the landlord at Raffles City, where Robinsons' second remaining store is located.

Meanwhile, Marks & Spencer said that its 10 other stores in Singapore remain open.

"Marks & Spencer remains fully committed to the local market, and is continuing to explore growth opportunities of our business in Singapore. We are continually enriching our services and product catalogues, and are eagerly looking for ways to advance our business with store upgrades," its spokesperson told BT.

Both Robinsons and Marks & Spencer operate as part of the Al Futtaim group, which is owned by Emirati tycoon Abdulla Al Futtaim and run by his son Omar, said Forbes.

Robinsons announced its exit in October, but has continued to keep the two stores open for closing-down sales.

Marks & Spencer, on the other hand, opened a pop-up store at Waterway Point shortly after the news. In October, it had confirmed with BT that it had no intention of closing its "thriving business" in Singapore. The retailer made a profit after tax of S$101,613 in 2018, down from S$2.9 million a year ago, financial records showed.

In the United Kingdom, Marks & Spencer last month reported the first loss in its 94 years as a publicly listed company, largely due to a decline in clothing sales amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

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