JOB FEARS AS CASH CRISIS GRIPS TRAFFORD CENTRE
MALL OWNERS IN COLLAPSE
THE owners of the Trafford Centre have gone into administration.
Trafford council expressed ‘serious concern’ for jobs and businesses after Intu declared its collapse.
The firm has been teetering on the edge for a number of weeks and employs 3,000 people directly across the UK, while a further 102,000 work for the shops in its shopping centres. It is the biggest employer in Trafford.
Intu had been grappling with nearly £5 billion of debt, built up before and during the coronavirus pandemic, but in Trafford, the news is particularly bad.
Coun James Wright, the council’s executive member for housing and regeneration, said: “The news that Intu has gone into administration is a devastating blow for the company, all the businesses and, of course, the employees and the borough as a whole.
“Our thoughts go out to all the staff and business owners who are concerned about their future following this terrible news. Trafford council will do all it can to help people who could potentially lose their jobs. The centre is continuing to trade under the administrators and I would urge people in the borough to continue to shop there and support the businesses.”
The company said the popular shopping venue will continue to trade for the time being in spite of this announcement.
Shortly after 2pm yesterday, it was announced that ‘Intu said it has filed to appoint James Robert Tucker, Michael Robert Pink and David John Pike from KPMG as administrators for the company.’ It came minutes after the London Stock Exchange suspended shares in the shopping centre owner.
The M.E.N. reported the company had been locked in talks all week with administrators as it struggled with its debt.
The group, which also owns the
Lakeside shopping centre in Essex, confirmed it had been forced to bring KPMG in on standby as administrators earlier this week as it was negotiating with lenders.
Intu confirmed that Trafford Centre shops will continue to operate for now.
A statement on Intu’s website reads: “Underlying group operating companies remain unaffected and all shopping centres are continuing to trade.
“The intu Group’s relationships with its tenants are with these operating companies, not the companies entering administration.
“The shopping centre operating companies have or are expected to enter into transitional services agreements with the administrators of the central entities to ensure continuity of service provision by the central entities to the individual shopping centres.”
The Trafford Centre is currently home to more than 200 shops, restaurants and attractions.
The Intu website says that ‘as many as 3,500 coaches pull up at the centre every year, on top of regular shoppers and leisure-seekers coming by car or public transport, generating a 29 million-strong annual footfall.’