New Look bags Borders' flagship and four other stores

New Look, the young value fashion giant, is to take five stores from ailing bookseller Borders UK including its massive flagship store on Oxford Street.

The huge store will be New Look’s second on Oxford Street.

Yesterday, a Borders UK spokeswoman said: “We have now agreed to sell the leasehold interest on five of our stores to a major fashion retailer.”

The five stores are Borders' flagship on Oxford Street, Llantrisant, London Colney, Dublin and Swindon.

For the year to 28 March 2009, New Look delivered total sales up by 14.9 per cent to £1.32bn to buck the downward trend in the sector. Its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation jumped by 10.2 per cent to £217.6m.

Founded in 1969, New Look now has 612 stores in the UK and Ireland, in addition to outlets in countries including France, Belgium, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. New Look declined to comment.