Office Holdings
{{Infobox company
|name = Office Holdings
|logo = Office_Holdings_logo.svg
|type = Private
|predecessor = Office London (1981)
|industry = Retail
|products = Footwear
|foundation = {{Start date and age|1983|10|25}}
|location_city = London
|location_country = United Kingdom
|area_served = United Kingdom and Ireland
|locations = 86 (2025)
|revenue = {{increase}} £294 million (2024){{cite web |title=Office Holdings Limited Company Profile |url=https://pomanda.com/company/01764341/office-holdings-limited |website=Pomanda |access-date=7 July 2025}}
|net_income = {{increase}} £39 million (2024)
|parent = Truworths
|homepage = {{URL|www.office.co.uk}}
}}
Office Holdings is a fashion retailer owned by the South African company, Truworths. It operates the "Office" chain of footwear standalone stores in the UK & Ireland. Office Holdings also owns Offspring; a casual shoe and trainer retailer in the UK.{{Cite web|url=https://www.offspring.co.uk/view/content/aboutus-info-page|title=About Offspring|website=www.offspring.co.uk|language=en|access-date=2017-08-29}}
File:Office, Southside Wandsworth.jpg shopping centre in London]]
File:Office, Putney Exchange 01.jpg shopping centre in London]]
History
The company's first store opened in 1981 under the name "Office London" with a concession inside the "Hyper Hyper" store on Kensington High Street. The name came from the fact that their merchandise was originally displayed on old office furniture. The first standalone Office store opened on Kings Road, London in 1984.{{Cite web|url=https://www.office.co.uk/view/content/about-us-page|title=About Us|website=www.office.co.uk|language=en|access-date=2017-08-29}} By 2014, the company had 105 standalone stores across the UK and circa 50 concessions.
In 1996 Office launched the Offspring brand, a fashion sports footwear concept.{{cite web |title=OFFSPRING at 20 |website=OFFSPRING |url=https://www.offspring.co.uk/view/content/offspring20/ |access-date=7 July 2025}} Poste, an upmarket men's boutique, was launched in 2000; it is styled after a typical gentleman's club. This was followed by Poste Mistress in 2001, a ladies' footwear boutique selling labels such as Vivien Westwood and Dries van Noten.{{cite web |title=Office Holdings – History |website=Office.co.uk |url=https://www.office.co.uk/view/content/about-us-page |access-date=7 July 2025}}
In 2015 Office was warned by the Information Commissioner's Office to improve its data security practices, after the personal details of more than a million customers, including passwords, were found to be stored in an insecure, unencrypted database outside of the company's core systems. Remedial measures included enforcing a revised data retention policy to ensure that data is only kept as long as necessary.{{cite web|website=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-30896805|title=Shoe retailer Office warned on data breach|date=20 January 2015|access-date=20 March 2015}}
The company has changed hands a number of times. Initially, it was purchased by Tom Hunter of the West Coast Capital Group, whose portfolio at the time included high street shops Qube and USC and hotel chain Travelodge.{{cite news |title=Hunter's well shod after Office sale |website=scotsman.com |date=15 December 2010 |url=https://www.scotsman.com/business/hunters-well-shod-after-office-sale-1692597 |access-date=10 December 2010}} West Coast subsequently sold the business to Silverfleet Capital in 2010.{{cite news |title=Silverfleet Capital acquires Office Holdings |website=mergr.com |date=28 November 2010 |url=https://mergr.com/transaction/silverfleet-capital-acquires-office-holdings |access-date=7 July 2025}}
In December 2015, South African clothing retailer Truworths acquired Office Holdings for £256 million (R5.5bn).{{Cite news|url=http://www.fin24.com/Companies/Retail/truworths-in-r55bn-uk-buy-20151130|title=Truworths in R5.5bn UK buy|work=Fin24|access-date=2017-08-29}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{official website|https://www.office.co.uk}}
Category:1983 establishments in the United Kingdom
Category:Retail companies of the United Kingdom