Begbies Traynor finances boosted by collapse of stationery group

BEGBIES Traynor says its finances were boosted by the collapse of Paperchase earlier this year.

The restructuring specialist was appointed as administrator after the struggling stationery chain failed to secure any buyers.

Paperchase’s 106 branches could face closure after Tesco agreed to buy the brand but not its stores or workforce.

Begbies said the ongoing administration, which involves keeping the stores open and running the business in the short term, is a ‘higher-value’ insolvency case which has helped to strengthen its financial performance. The restructuring business said it was confident it would meet market expectations of between £19.7m and £20.6m in pre-tax profit and between £117.7m and £121.4m in revenue for the year.

Cost pressures and weaker consumer spending have led to a raft of collapses and restructurings on the High Street since the start of 2023.

Figures from the Centre for Retail Research last week showed that 14,874 job cuts have announced since the start of the year. This includes 3,185 in large retailers undergoing some form of insolvency proceedings, such as Paperchase and fashion chain M&Co, which also tumbled into administration in recent weeks.

Ric Traynor, executive chairman of Begbies, said: ‘We have continued to perform well across the group and our outlook for the full year remains unchanged.’