Topman / Topshop was a well-known British fashion retailer that became a cult shopping destination on London’s Oxford Street. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Topshop became a genuine mecca for Russian tourists, who first began arriving in London en masse after the fall of the Iron Curtain. For many Russians of that era, buying clothes at Topman or Topshop was considered a mark of prestige and a Western lifestyle. The flagship store on Oxford Street, spanning more than 8,400 square meters across five floors, welcomed roughly 28,000 shoppers a day and was the largest in the chain. Russian tourists were willing to stand in line for hours and spend considerable sums to bring home clothes with recognizable labels. In the early 1990s, mentioning a purchase from Topman could genuinely impress people around you. The brand was founded in 1964 as a division of the department store Peter Robinson, and became an independent chain in the 1970s. Topman launched in 1978 as the brand’s menswear line. By the 1990s, the chain’s stores had become a symbol of British fashion and youth culture. In 2021 the brand was acquired by ASOS, after which its physical stores were closed, including the famous Oxford Street flagship, and Topshop/Topman shifted to an online-only format. In 2024, 75% of the brand was sold to the Danish company Bestseller.
Topman. Oxford Street
