House of Fraser looks at more sales

HOUSE of Fraser, which has announced the closure of its Arnotts store in Paisley near Glasgow, has instructed its property experts to explore the possibility of selling other poorly performing outlets.

Britain's third-biggest department store group is said to have pinpointed a 'small number of sites' that are up for sale and has opened talks with potential buyers.

The Paisley store, which will close in January, was sold for £2.1 million for housing development - with the loss of about 160 jobs. John Coleman, chief executive of House of Fraser, has previously admitted that there is a small number of the chain's 50 stores that perform 'less well'.

However, the company refused to comment on the location or number of stores for sale.

Last week, House of Fraser was forced to bring forward its interim results after a newswire service obtained a draft of the announcementdue on Wednesday. The Barkers-to-DH Evans chain will have to face questioning from the Financial Services Authority over the slip-up.

House of Fraser, which this year has attracted approaches from Scottish entrepreneur Tom Hunter and rival chain Allders, reported a pre-tax loss and exceptional items of £3.9 million in the 26 weeks to July 26 compared with a restated loss of £5 million last time.

The losses were broadly in line with market expectations.