Principles was the first newly launched chain from the firm since Topman in 1978, with the majority of the company's growth over the years having come from acquisitions.
In 1985 a sister brand aimed at upmarket male shoppers, Principles For Men, was launched; this chain was phased out in the late 1990s/early 2000s as part of a scaling-back of the group's less successful operations.
The administrators closed 66 stores due to the initial lack of a suitable buyer before Debenhams, which already hosted a number of Principles concessions in its department stores, subsequently announced that it would acquire Principles brand and most of the stock.
In 1998, Debenhams was demerged from the rest of the group and began trading independently, although the Principles concessions remained in place.
In February 2010, Debenhams relaunched the Principles brand as 'Principles by Ben de Lisi',[3] with fashion designer Ben de Lisi giving his name to the brand, joining numerous other designers as part of the company's key 'Designers at Debenhams' range.