1,600 jobs put at risk as Joules teeters on the brink of collapse
AROUND 1,600 jobs are at risk after Joules admitted it has failed to secure a cash injection to stay afloat.
The yummy mummy fashion retailer has teetered on the brink of collapse for weeks.
But yesterday the retailer said it is appointing administrators.
The retailer, a favourite of the Prince and Princess of Wales as well as presenter Holly Willoughby and singer Taylor Swift, said last week it was in talks with founder Tom Joule about a temporary loan to stave off the collapse.
The firm was also considering a fresh fundraising on the stock market after being hammered by a drop-off in demand and huge increases in shipping and other costs. But Joules said rescue talks had fallen through and it would appoint KPMG’s former restructuring arm Interpath Advisory ‘as soon as reasonably practicable’.
As a result, Joules shareholders, whose investments had plummeted 96pc in the past year, have seen the value of their holdings wiped out.
And it is also a further blow to the High Street as many or all of Joules’s 130 stores will shut.
Mr Joule said it was ‘a deeply disappointing day for Joules, and a sad day for me personally’.
Advisers will likely look for a buyer with retail analyst Nick Bubb saying there is ‘no doubt Next will be poised to pick up the pieces’. The High Street giant planned to plough £15m into Joules before pulling out of talks in September.
Other likely bidders include Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group with M&S also tipped as a potential contender. Joule could try to snap up the business and said he hoped to ‘continue to play an important role’ in its future. Doncaster-based businessman Richard Teatum, who bought up a huge chunk of Joules in recent months, could also make a swoop. ■ GIEVES & Hawkes, which can be traced back to 1771, is up for sale after its Hong Kong-based owner Trinity Group collapsed last year. Sky News reported Frasers Group is in advanced talks to buy the brand.