Department store chain Harvey Nichols is no longer considered a going concern by its directors and is likely to fall into administration without the success of one of its buyout offers, company filings have revealed.

In its annual report, published 7 August, the luxury retailer’s directors said that they have prepared its financial records on a “break-up basis”, rather than that of a going concern. This means they expect that if one or more of the ongoing bids for the company are not successful, the company will not have the funds to continue operating.

While this could be solved by finding additional funding elsewhere, no such funding has been agreed in this scenario.

The company is currently in a critical financial position, having made a loss of over £170 million in the year ending March 2025, according to its filings. This was in part due to an 11 per cent decrease in year-on-year turnover driven by the cost-of-living crisis and the end to tax-free shopping for tourists.

Harvey Nichols has been fielding offers from several major retailers, including Next and Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, after being put up for sale by owner Dickson Poon in June. Frasers Group is considered the front runner, according to Sky News, and could launch its official bid within days.

On Friday, Ashely told the Financial Times that the brand was in a “death spiral” and turning it around would be a “huge challenge”. He added that he would keep the company’s flagship Knightsbridge store and its shop in Edinburgh, but rebrand the rest as House of Fraser or Flannels, other brands within Frasers Group.

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