Debenhams acquired by online giant Boohoo for £55m

Online fashion retail giant Boohoo has bought the Debenhams website and intellectual property assets for £55million.

But the deal does not include the purchase of the high street retailer 's remaining 118 department stores across the country, leaving up to 12,000 jobs at risk.

Debenhams confirmed last May that its Birmingham store, in the Bullring, would close, alongside its Leicester and Glasgow branches.

Last week, Debenhams also confirmed the permanent closure of six other stores including its Oxford Street branch.

Debenhams went into administration last April and started the liquidation procedures in December after failing to secure a rescue deal.

The historic 242-year-old firm will now operate as an online-only retailer. It currently attracts 300million website visits a year.

Boohoo has said it will relaunch Debenhams ' online offering next year.

Boohoo chief executive John Lyttle said: "The acquisition of the Debenhams brand is an important development for the Group, as we seek to capture incremental growth opportunities arising from the accelerating shift to online retail.

"We have developed a successful multi-brand direct-to-consumer platform that continues to disrupt the markets that we operate in.

"The acquisition represents an exciting strategic opportunity to transform our target addressable market through the creation of an online marketplace that leverages Debenhams' high brand awareness and traffic through the development of beauty and fashion partnerships connecting brands with consumers."

The acquisition of Debenhams is the latest purchase for Boohoo, who have previously acquired established retailers Oasis, Coast and Karen Millen.

Pictured: Debenhams in the Bullring, which shut its doors last year