Arcadia Group History

With over 2,600 outlets in high streets and shopping centres throughout the country, Arcadia Group is the UK's second largest clothing retailer.

Arcadia Group Plc is the new name for the former Burton Group Plc. The name change took place at the same time as the demerger of Debenhams in January 1998. At that time Debenhams became a separate company with its own listing on the Stock Exchange. The fashion 'multiples' - Burton Menswear, Dorothy Perkins, Evans, Hawkshead, Principles, Racing Green and TOPSHOP/TOPMAN - were renamed and reorganised into Arcadia Group. In June 1999, the Group consolidated its multi-channel approach with the launch of Zoom, an e-commerce and Internet Service Provider. The acquisition of the Sears womenswear business - the Miss Selfridge, Wallis, Warehouse and Outfit brands - increased Arcadia Group's share of the UK womenswear market to 11.5%.

This was the latest chapter in the history of the Group, which was founded eponymously as "Montague Burton" in 1900 by a Lithuanian immigrant. When the young Burton found that he couldn't afford to go to university, he borrowed £100 from a relative and set up his own menswear shop in Chesterfield.

Within 10 years, the business had expanded to a chain of 14 shops in Sheffield and Leeds and had introduced the bespoke tailoring operation that was to make Montague Burton a household name in the 20s and 30s.

The outbreak of the First World War brought a temporary halt to the rapid expansion of shops. However, production capacity increased dramatically as Burton had won contracts to supply uniform clothing for nearly a quarter of the armed forces. The end of the War brought an enormous unprecedented demand for men's clothing for which Burton was well placed.