Peacocks enters administration but will continue trading
Date: 19 January 2012
Clothing retailer Peacocks has entered administration after attempts by the company to restructure its £240 million debts finally failed.
The company, which employs nearly 10,000 people, will now be run
by administrators from KPMG who have said they are 'actively
seeking a buyer for the business as a going concern' and stressed
that for the time being all stores will continue to operate as
usual.
KPMG has today made 249 redundancies at Peacocks Head
Office in Cardiff but to date no store closures or redundancies
have been announced.
Reacting to the news, John Gorle, National
Officer for non-food retail at the shopworkers Union Usdaw
said:
"This is devastating news for the workers at Peacocks and for
the South Wales economy and it's potentially further grim news for
high streets across the UK."
"However, there remains a strong possibility that most of the
business could be saved and we have spoken to the administrators
this afternoon to urge them to keep Peacocks trading for as long as
possible in order to allow sufficient time for a buyer to be
found."
"While we hope it won't be necessary, we have also reminded the
administrators of their legal duty to consult with workers and
their representatives before making any large scale redundancies
and they have assured us they will do this before making any
further announcements. Should they fail to do so, we will take
appropriate action to protect our members' interests."
"We are in the process of contacting all our members at Peacocks
to offer them advice and support, but I'd also advise them to
contact their local Usdaw office or official as soon as
possible."
Notes for Editors:
- Usdaw represents a small number of shop based staff at
Peacocks.
- Usdaw (the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied
Workers) is the UK's fourth biggest and fastest growing trade union
and has over 410,000 members. Membership has increased by more than
17% in the last five years and by nearly a third in the last
decade. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union
also has many members in transport, distribution, food
manufacturing, chemicals and other trades. For the latest news on
Usdaw's campaigns visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk