Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group have agreed to pay BHS creditors £30 million, following the controversial collapse of the department chain.
The agreement will mean that legal action brought against the retail consortium will be dropped.
Similarly, back in February, Sir Green also reached a £363 million cash settlement with the Pensions Regulator to avoid a lengthy court battle.
A spokesman for the department store’s liquidators, FRP Advisory, said of the latest agreement: “The liquidators of SHB Realisations, formerly BHS, reached an agreement with Arcadia Group in relation to a number of matters, including Arcadia’s floating charge dated 14 April 2015.
“We can confirm that as part of the agreement, over £30m was released from reserves held in relation to Arcadia’s secured claim into the monies available for BHS unsecured creditors and the floating charge is to be released.”
Back in 2015, Arcadia sold the collapsing BHS brand to Dominic Chappell for £1, who was at the helm of Retail Acquisitions.
Currently, Chappel is under prosecution by the Pensions Regulator for failing to comply with three notices for information issued under section 72 of the Pensions Act 2004.
Nevertheless, Sir Green’s headaches are far from over, with Arcadia Group’s biggest asset highstreet brand Topshop, having under-performed as of late.
Back in June, Arcadia group’s holding company Taveta investments reported a plunge in profits of a remarkable 79 percent, amid ongoing BHS-related complications and various one-off costs.
Moreover, stiff competition from on-trend Inditex-owned Zara (BME:ITX), and cheaper online alternatives such as Boohoo (LON:BOO) and Asos (LON:ASC) have also challenged Arcadia in recent years.
Last week Arcadia announced a major shake-up at Topshop, with the departure of creative boss Kate Phelan, alongside Topman’s Gordon Richardson. Both had been long-standing figures at the chain, signalling a creative shift for the brand.
According to the announcement, they are set to be succeeded by former Vogue art director David Hagglund, who will take on a new combined role.
In addition, newly appointed chief executive Paul Price commences next month, as Arcadia looks to turnaround its fortunes.