Dolcis Shoes is a shoewear retailer in the United Kingdom that operate online and through retailers. Previously, they owned over 65 standalone shops in the UK and over 150 concessions. Bought by

Harvey Jacobson Harvey Jacobson (born 28 June 1956 in the City of Salford) is a businessman and entrepreneur based in the North West of England. He is the executive chairman of the Jacobson Group, an independent supplier of footwear in the UK. Jacobson Group o ...

, of the Jacobson Group in 2012, they relaunched their collections the following year to celebrate their 150th anniversary.

History

The company began life on a street barrow in 1863 when John Upson started to sell his shoes on

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

Town Market. Business grew, and from the barrow he graduated to his first store in Woolwich called the Great Boot Provider. In 1920 the company went public and the name Dolcis started to appear over the shop doors. In 1956, it became part of the British Shoe Corporation and in 1967 was relocated to Leicester. In 1988 Dolcis was chosen by British Shoe Corporation as the pilot company for the installation of EPOS equipment. In 1998 the Dolcis business was bought by the

Alexon Group Alexon Group plc was an clothing retailer, based in Luton, England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange (symbol AXN). It was an constituent of the FTSE Fledgling Index The FTSE Fledgling Index comprises companies listed on the ma ...

and relocated to Luton. In 2006 Dolcis was sold by Alexon in a deal involving Scottish retail entrepreneur John Kinnaird. Kinnaird unveiled an ambitious plan to refurbish the chain's stores, boost the fashionability of its products and update the brand. Plans were to see 20 shops refitted by the end of 2007, another 20 in the first half of 2008 and the remainder by the end of that year. At the end of 2007, Dolcis had 65 High Street branches across the UK. In addition to these there were also over 150 Dolcis concessions, primarily within ''Bay Trading'' and ''Envy'' stores. In 2007 Dolcis began trading online.

Administration

The company was making a loss of £6m a year on the sale of £62m worth of shoes. On 21 January 2008 the retailer fell into administration, partially as a result of the slowdown in spending due to the onset of the

credit crunch A credit crunch (also known as a credit squeeze, credit tightening or credit crisis) is a sudden reduction in the general availability of loans (or credit) or a sudden tightening of the conditions required to obtain a loan from banks. A credit cr ...

, which led to a

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

. On 13 February 2008 administrators

KPMG KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations. Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...

announced that the brand name ''Dolcis'' and 24 of the company's 185 shops had been bought by

Stylo Group Barratts was a brand of high street shoe shops operating in the UK and Ireland. The Barratts shoes brand traded from 100 UK and Ireland stores. The company was established in Northampton in 1903, and became a highly successful brand known for it ...

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

. 800 former Dolcis staff lost their jobs, and the shops were rebranded as

Barratts Shoes Barratts was a brand of high street shoe shops operating in the UK and Ireland. The Barratts shoes brand traded from 100 UK and Ireland stores. The company was established in Northampton in 1903, and became a highly successful brand known for it ...

. However, the company reformed and relaunched its new online collection in 2012 after being acquired by the Jacobson Group.

References

External links

Sale to Stylo Barratt
Retail companies established in 1863 Retail companies disestablished in 2008 Retail companies established in 2012 2008 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Defunct retail companies of the United Kingdom Shoe companies of the United Kingdom Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom Footwear retailers {{UK-retail-company-stub