JD Sports closes Hip stores, moves brand online

JD Sports has officially closed all physical stores of Hip as it removes the premium streetwear multibrand retailer from high streets and pivots towards an online-only model.

The brand’s remaining two stores in Manchester and Leeds closed at the end of June, bringing to an end nearly four decades of physical retail.

Hip was established in 1987 as an independent menswear store before it expanded into womenswear in 2022. The retailer was then taken over by JD Sports in 2014, after enduring a long period seeking investment.

For JD Sports, the closure of Hip’s stores come as part of wider efforts to reduce its physical retail footprint in the UK. In 2026, the group shuttered 24 locations and has turned its attention towards fewer and better shops.

The strategy was reflected in the recent opening of a Trafford Centre flagship in Manchester, which serves as a showcase of the group’s investment in a “small number of destination stores to anchor regional presence”.