Key facts
- Scentre Group chief executive Elliott Rusanow said David Jones had not paid rent since September and was in breach.
- Rusanow said Scentre made an offer to Anchorage Capital Partners that would have allowed David Jones to keep trading, and it was rejected.
- Two people with knowledge of the discussions said administrators were the next step for David Jones.
- David Jones had sought to cut its store count from 38, aiming eventually for about one-third of that size, according to a person with knowledge of discussions.
- Shares in rival Myer Holdings, operator of the Myer department store chain, were down more than 50% in 2026.
David Jones was poised to fall into administration after last-minute talks between its private equity owner, Anchorage Capital Partners, and its main landlord, Scentre Group, broke down, according to a report published on November 4, 2026. The collapse of the talks put the future of the 188-year-old upmarket department store chain at risk.
Scentre Group, which owns Westfield, said discussions with Anchorage had ended without an agreement. "They have not paid rent since September and therefore are in breach," Scentre chief executive Elliott Rusanow said in a statement on Wednesday. "We have made a generous offer to Anchorage Capital Partners that would have facilitated the continuation of David Jones trading and that offer has disappointingly been rejected by them."
Two people with knowledge of the discussions but unauthorized to speak publicly said the next step was for administrators to be appointed. One person briefed on the matter said administrators would want to keep stores trading with little interruption through Black Friday and Christmas to capture the cash injection during those trading periods.
Earlier on Wednesday, a David Jones spokesperson said chief executive Erica Berchtold was in advanced discussions with key stakeholders. "This includes a review of the portfolio of stores across Australia and the trading terms with suppliers and brand partners," the spokesperson said. The retailer was contacted for comment after Scentre confirmed that talks had ended.
David Jones had been seeking to renegotiate lease terms with its landlords and reduce its store numbers from the current 38, aiming to offload poor performing suburban sites, according to a person with knowledge of discussions. Longer term, the retailer had wanted to reduce its network to about one-third of its current size.
The upheaval follows years of steep losses, weak consumer spending and a string of underperforming stores that left the heritage retailer defaulting on its rent. Mid- to upmarket department stores have struggled for years, and the re-emergence of high inflation and associated cost-of-living pressures has made trading conditions worse. Shares in Myer Holdings, operator of the rival Myer department store chain, were down more than 50% in 2026.
RMIT University advertising expert Prof Robert Crawford said David Jones had been caught in an intensifying squeeze between discount chains and luxury fashion houses that sell direct to consumers. "The David Jones model has really struggled to adapt to modern retailing," Crawford said.