Edinburgh Woollen Mill to move HQ to England

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
May 24, 2018

Edinburgh Woollen Mill, whose stable of brands includes Peacocks and Austin Reed, is planning to relocate its headquarters from Scotland to England to support its expansion plans.

The business has recently added several brands to its portfolio, such as tailoring brand Berwin & Berwin and Jaeger, and hinted at further expansion in its latest financial report.

Now, it has confirmed its head office will move from Langholm to Carlisle in July, as it said its new premises will be more accessible for its partners due to its location on the main railway line between London and Glasgow. There are currently 190 staff employed at the Langholm base, which will be transformed into a heritage centre.

A spokesman said: “The decision to move to Carlisle was not taken lightly or ­quickly, but EWM Group is expanding and our current premises in Langholm are not capable of supporting a modern, fast-growing, national retail development.”

"Langholm has played a critical role in our company's history and heritage, and we will be retaining our headquarters building there. We have ambitions to turn the building into a heritage centre which celebrates the role that both Edinburgh Woollen Mill and textiles has played, and continues to play, in Scotland."

The company has launched a consultation with colleagues about the move, and said it is looking at the possibility of providing daily coach transport between the two cities for a transitional period.

Langholm has been the home of the business since its launch in 1946. Edinburgh Woollen Mill has come a long way since opening its first textiles store in 1970, reporting profits of £91.5 million on revenues of £592.1 million for the year to February 2017.