Oasis and Warehouse — British womenswear chains collapsed overnight in COVID

Oasis was a British womenswear brand founded in 1991, known for feminine, occasion-focused fashion targeting women in their twenties and thirties. Warehouse, founded earlier, offered a more modern, minimalist aesthetic. Both brands were owned by MWOK Ltd, part of a portfolio of high-street fashion labels that included Coast and Karen Millen. Together, Oasis and Warehouse operated 92 standalone stores and 437 concessions in department stores across the UK, making them a significant presence on British high streets and in shopping centres.

In April 2020, just weeks into the first nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, MWOK collapsed into administration. The timing was catastrophic — stores had been forced to close by government order, the spring fashion season was lost entirely, and the company had no cash reserves to survive an extended shutdown. John Kinnaird of Mazars was appointed administrator. All 92 stores and 437 concessions were closed permanently. More than 1,800 employees lost their jobs, with minimal notice and no redundancy pay for many who worked in concessions.

Boohoo Group acquired the Oasis and Warehouse brands, websites, and intellectual property out of administration in June 2020 for £5.3 million. Boohoo took only the digital assets — the online businesses — and had no interest in the physical stores. The brand names continued online under Boohoo's portfolio, but the retail infrastructure of nearly 530 points of sale that had defined both brands on the British high street was gone. Unsecured creditors received just £500,000 of the nearly £30 million they were owed.