Why is Debenhams closing stores?

Debenhams has revealed it is to press ahead with turnaround plans, which includes the closure of 22 stores UK-wide, including one in Scotland.

Debenhams' creditors agreed a CVA today.

We take a look at today's developments:

• Debenhams' administrators announced this morning that they would reject all bids made for the chain, saying they were "not at the level required to be taken forward”. It is not known who the bids were from or what they offered. Previous bids from Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley in April were rejected, sending the company into a pre-pack administration.

• A meeting of creditors this afternoon agreed a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA), which ringfences the company, allowing a proportion of the debt to be paid back gradually. At least 75 per cent of creditors need to agree to a CVA for it to go ahead.

• Debenhams' owners, Celine, a consortium of lenders set up in the wake of the administration last month, had already said they would press ahead with a "turnaround plan" if the CVA was approved.

• The plan includes the imminent closure of 22 shops - including one in Kirkcaldy - putting 1,200 jobs at risk UK-wide. A further 28 shops are likely to close in the future under the plans, although these have not yet been identified.

• It will also slash rents at 100 of its other stores.

• Debenhams has 166 stores UK-wide, including 16 in Scotland in towns and cities including Aberdeen, Dundee, Dunfermline, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

• Retail has suffered from competition from online stores and soaring costs at bricks and mortar outlets. Debenhams underwent a huge physical expansion, saying in 2006 that it planned to double its 120 branches.

• Debenhams is not the only department store which is struggling. John Lewis warned that 2018 had been one of the toughest years of its history, while House of Fraser has also fallen into administration and closed some branches. House of Fraser was bought out of administration for £90m in August last year by Sports Direct.

Timeline:

October 2016: Debenhams announced a drop in profits, with earnings falling 10.4 per cent before tax.

October 2017: The retailer reported a further collapse in annual pre-tax profits, slumping 44 per cent to £59 million in the year to September 2 - loss of nearly £500 million against a profit of £59m a year earlier.

June 2018: Debenhams issued its third profit warning of the year.

March 2019: Debenhams warns it will not meet its profit forecast for the full year, citing increased financing costs and continuing “trade headwinds”. It later secured a £200m refinancing deal with its existing lenders.

8 April 2019: Sports Direct, which has previously been planning a £61m cash offer for the business, tabled an offer of £150m, and a second of £200m. Both bids - including the second which included its head Mike Ashley being made chief executive of Debenhams - were rejected.

9 April 2019: Debenhams entered a pre-pack administration, which saw its lenders take control.