Textiles Direct to trade through administration
ADMINISTRATORS have been appointed to homeware and soft furnishings retailer Textiles Direct but nearly all the chain’s shops will continue to trade.
Textiles Direct Holdings has 52 shops across the country including outlets in Birmingham and Walsall.
Administrator Kevin Lucas, from insolvency specialist Lucas Johnson, has closed five shops but is in talks with potential buyers about taking the rest of the estate on.
The closures mean around 40 of the group’s 325 staff have been made redundant, with some roles going from the head office in Oldham. The insolvency comes several weeks after the business filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators, and three years after it secured a company voluntary arrangement to reduce its rent bills.
Lucas said: “The administration had been caused by a number of factors, but the single largest factor is the unprecedented decline in turnover, which has been in the region of 20% over the past 12 months.
“The pressure on the High Street is well known, disposable incomes and discretionary spending have been squeezed much more than anyone could have foreseen, meaning those retailing non-essential items have been hit much harder than expected and, as is common with many retail business, onerous leases and potentially high fixed central overheads mean little can be done to turn a business around outside of administration.”
He added: “The business continues to trade during the period of administration and we believe a suitable buyer will be found. I am pleased to have already received several expressions of interest in the business. We have secured the support of a major supplier to ensure sales are maximised during the coming weeks.”
Ownership of the firm switched in February 2012 from Liverpool-based Steve Bentley to TDT Group Holdings, which does not appear to be a UK-registered company. However, the business is now based in Oldham. In January 2013 three directors stepped down – Claire Lyle, Margaret Kenwright and Michael Daly. They were replaced by Zahid Shaikh. Latest accounts, filed in September 2011, show the firm made a pre-tax profit of £338,745 on sales of £19.6m.
Online sales through the Textiles Direct website are handled by a separate business which is unaffected.
