Kikki K outlets stay open as receivers seek buyer
Receivers of luxury stationery retailer Kikki K are working on a plan to sell the failed business.
The Australian company, which operates 65 stores worldwide, including seven in New Zealand, was put into receivership on Tuesday after a difficult trading period in December and January.
Receivers Cor Cordis said stores in New Zealand would remain open while the company’s financial position was assessed.
Cor Cordis spokesman Michael Smith said it was too early to speculate on the company’s future but the receivers would like to keep it intact.
Receivers Barry Wight and Bruno Secatore would have a better understanding of the company’s position by the end of this week, Smith said.
In a statement Wight said Kikki K had joined a ‘‘long list of financially distressed retailers’’ to have fallen victim to ‘‘softening consumer spending, high leasing costs, compounded by a disappointing December and January trading period’’.
‘‘That said, we believe Kikki K has a strong brand with a large global following, producing sales of almost A$70 million (NZ$72m) a year.’’
The receivers were working with management on a plan to restructure the business for possible sale, Wight said.
Chief executive Paul Lacy said an ‘‘unprecedented line-up of external factors’’ such as the coronavirus had contributed to the business’ collapse.
‘‘We’ve had the triplewhammy of soft consumer demand, the business impact of bushfires and more recently the unprecedented and profound impact of coronavirus which is hitting so many businesses and countries so hard,’’ he said.
The unrest in Hong Kong, where Kikki K has a number of stores, had also taken a toll, Smith said.
Kikki K executives had been close to a rescue deal with a large global investor prior to the collapse, but ‘‘ran out of time’’, he said.
Receivers would continue existing negotiations as well as look to other potential buyers, he said.
In the interim, stores would continue trading.