Peacocks (retailer)
Encyclopedia
Peacocks, is a fast fashion
retailer based in Cardiff
, Wales
. The chain is owned by The Peacock Group plc and employs over 6,000 people. There are currently over 600 Peacocks stores in the United Kingdom and more than 200 in 12 overseas countries. Over the years, Peacocks has been re-branded to a value-fashion selling store, as opposed to selling homeware and basic clothing.
in 1884 as a family-run business selling a wide range of cheap goods.
Over the years, Peacocks Penny Bazaar expanded, opened more stores and the ranges available changed to keep up with the times. It was kept a family business being handed down from father to son through generations of the Peacocks family.
, where its headquarters remain. This move had a profound effect on the development of the group; its growing network was concentrated in south Wales
and southern England
for many years. In the early 1990s, Peacocks grew further and in December 1999 the firm was floated on the London Stock Exchange
.
was agreed, supported by Goldman Sachs
and hedge funds including Och-Ziff and Perry Capital that own 55% of the new holding company. The company delisted from the exchange on 1 February 2006, again becoming privately owned.
In line with the increased demand for value-for-money fashion, Peacocks began to provide high fashion womenswear, menswear and childrenswear. High street stores have been revamped together with a steer towards prime locations.
It was confirmed on 24th May 2011, that Allan Leighton
had been appointed as the new chairman of Peacocks, to renegotiate the companies debt holdings.
designs "exclusive" ranges for Peacocks, and her "Black Dress" was the fastest selling product on the High Street in Autumn/Winter 2010, worn by celebrities including Holly Willoughby
, Natalie Imbruglia
, and Courtney Love
. In January 2011, Daisy Lowe
, daughter of Pearl, confirmed that she is now designing swimwear for Spring/Summer 2011. In April 2011, Peacocks launched its own Botique range which has received critical acclaim. In June 2011, an online-exclusive label hit menswear - D-STRUCT.
stores outside of the United Kingdom
in Bahrain
, Cyprus
, Egypt
, Georgia
, Gibraltar
, Greece
, Kuwait
, Malta
, Poland
, Romania
, Russia
, Saudi Arabia
, Serbia
, Slovakia
, Ukraine
and United Arab Emirates
. Peacocks London is growing rapidly and more stores are currently in development.
Fast fashion
Fast fashion is a contemporary term used by fashion retailers to acknowledge that designs move from catwalk to store in the fastest time to capture current trends in the market. This has developed from a product-driven concept based on a manufacturing model referred to as "quick response" developed...
retailer based in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. The chain is owned by The Peacock Group plc and employs over 6,000 people. There are currently over 600 Peacocks stores in the United Kingdom and more than 200 in 12 overseas countries. Over the years, Peacocks has been re-branded to a value-fashion selling store, as opposed to selling homeware and basic clothing.
History
Peacocks Penny Bazaar
Peacocks was founded in WarringtonWarrington
Warrington is a town, borough and unitary authority area of Cheshire, England. It stands on the banks of the River Mersey, which is tidal to the west of the weir at Howley. It lies 16 miles east of Liverpool, 19 miles west of Manchester and 8 miles south of St Helens...
in 1884 as a family-run business selling a wide range of cheap goods.
Over the years, Peacocks Penny Bazaar expanded, opened more stores and the ranges available changed to keep up with the times. It was kept a family business being handed down from father to son through generations of the Peacocks family.
Relocation and expansion
In the 1940s, the company relocated to CardiffCardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, where its headquarters remain. This move had a profound effect on the development of the group; its growing network was concentrated in south Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and southern England
Southern England
Southern England, the South and the South of England are imprecise terms used to refer to the southern counties of England bordering the English Midlands. It has a number of different interpretations of its geographic extents. The South is considered by many to be a cultural region with a distinct...
for many years. In the early 1990s, Peacocks grew further and in December 1999 the firm was floated on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
.
2005: Management buyout
In 2005, a £400M management buyoutManagement buyout
A management buyout is a form of acquisition where a company's existing managers acquire a large part or all of the company.- Overview :Management buyouts are similar in all major legal aspects to any other acquisition of a company...
was agreed, supported by Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
and hedge funds including Och-Ziff and Perry Capital that own 55% of the new holding company. The company delisted from the exchange on 1 February 2006, again becoming privately owned.
In line with the increased demand for value-for-money fashion, Peacocks began to provide high fashion womenswear, menswear and childrenswear. High street stores have been revamped together with a steer towards prime locations.
It was confirmed on 24th May 2011, that Allan Leighton
Allan Leighton
Allan Leighton is an English businessman, former CEO of Asda and former non-executive Chairman of the Royal Mail.-Biography:Born in Hereford, the son of a Co-op stores manager, he was raised in Oxford...
had been appointed as the new chairman of Peacocks, to renegotiate the companies debt holdings.
Brands
In June 2011, Peacocks started to implement their own "Peacocks" brand on menswear clothing using a signature logo, and this now sets to follow with all departments across store.Pearl Lowe
Pearl LowePearl Lowe
-External links:*...
designs "exclusive" ranges for Peacocks, and her "Black Dress" was the fastest selling product on the High Street in Autumn/Winter 2010, worn by celebrities including Holly Willoughby
Holly Willoughby
Holly Marie Willoughby is an English television presenter and model, known for her work in presenting children's TV and entertainment shows. In her early career she modelled underwear and went on to present CD:UK...
, Natalie Imbruglia
Natalie Imbruglia
Natalie Jane Imbruglia is an Australian singer-songwriter, model and actress. In the early 1990s, Imbruglia was known to audiences as Beth Brennan in the popular Australian soap Neighbours. Three years after leaving the programme, Imbruglia launched a singing career with the international hit,...
, and Courtney Love
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love is an American rock musician. Love is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist for alternative rock band Hole, which she formed in 1989, and is an actress who has moved from bit parts in Alex Cox films to significant and acclaimed roles in The People vs...
. In January 2011, Daisy Lowe
Daisy Lowe
Daisy Rebecca Lowe is an English fashion model who has modelled for editorial photo shoots and commercial advertising campaigns and has worked as a runway model...
, daughter of Pearl, confirmed that she is now designing swimwear for Spring/Summer 2011. In April 2011, Peacocks launched its own Botique range which has received critical acclaim. In June 2011, an online-exclusive label hit menswear - D-STRUCT.
Peacocks London
Branded as Peacocks London, Peacocks has more than 200 franchiseFranchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
stores outside of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
and United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
. Peacocks London is growing rapidly and more stores are currently in development.