Marks & Spencer is poised to be the main beneficiary when the Littlewoods name disappears from UK high streets next year.
The 119-store Littlewoods chain was acquired last month by discount fashion specialists Primark for £409m. But, according to work by market share research group TNS, few Littlewoods shoppers will shop at Primark. Instead they will take their trade elsewhere - and most will head to M&S.
The disappearance of big names from high streets gives retailers a one-off chance to win new shoppers. Five years ago, when C&A shut down in the UK, one of the big beneficiaries was Next, which moved into 16 of C&A's former outlets.
Littlewoods' main appeal is to shoppers aged 55 and over. Some 60% of its turnover comes from this group. According to TNS Fashiontrak data the two retailers likely to make the biggest gains from Littlewoods' demise are M&S and Bhs - as they are the shops Littlewoods customers are most likely to use.
Bhs currently takes 5.2% of Littlewoods' customer spend elsewhere in the market, with chains such as Debenhams, Matalan and Next taking smaller percentages. But M&S takes a much larger 17.5%.
The demise of Littlewoods could provide a big boost to struggling M&S as the market for over-55s' clothing and footwear is worth £6.5bn.
Fiona Bell, director of TNS Fashiontrak, said the Littlewoods sale presented an opportunity for other retailers: "No doubt several retailers will now be looking to refine and broaden their ranges to try to take advantage of the potential this change in the high street offers over the coming year."
The Littlewoods name will disappear in March. The stores were acquired by Primark, but the chain, which is a subsidiary of Associated British Foods, intends to keep only around 40 shops. The rest will be sold and the favourites to pick up the outlets are New Look, Next and Philip Green's Arcadia group. Next is the second choice shop for just 3.3% of Littlewoods shoppers, while less than 2% name New Look and Primark as their second preferred destination.
Others set to benefit, Ms Bell said, included Matalan, Asda and bonmarché. The latter, which is part of Peacocks and has been badly underperforming recently, has the shoppers with the oldest average age of any high street chain.