Ted Baker is on the verge of closing all its shops in a matter of weeks, reports claim.
Administrators plan to shut all its branches by the end of August, by which time staff will lose their jobs, it is said. Ted Baker fell into administration earlier this year after a deal went sour between its American owners, Authentic Brands, and a Dutch operating partner that was meant to run the store operations.
Several stores have already closed since then, including ones at Manchester Shambles, Sheffield, Bridgend and in Belfast. These were shut as administrators at Teneo desperately scrambled to try to find a rescue buyer for the business.
But House of Fraser, owned by Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group pulled out of early talks, it is believed. Now the picture looks bleak for hundreds of employees, days after it emerged more than 1,000 people are set to lose their employment at Carpetright.
When Ted Baker fell into administration in March, it employed 975 people and had 46 shops in the UK and Europe. Shoppers have since have spotted huge clearance sales at Ted Baker sites across the country, although at the time administrators denied it was part of the administration process.
The Mirror has contacted the company for comment on the latest developments. The high-street clothing retail was founded in 1988 in Glasgow, The Sun reports. However, in April, we reported the following branches had closed;
- Birmingham Bullring
- Bristol
- Bromley
- Cambridge
- Exeter
- Leeds
- Liverpool One
- London Bridge
- Milton Keynes
- Nottingham
- Oxford
- Bicester (notice served before administration process)
- Brompton Road, London (notice served before administration process)
- Floral Street, London (notice served before administration process)
- Manchester Trafford (notice served before administration process)
Other stores, such as the ones at Manchester Shambles, Sheffield, Bridgend and in Belfast, have fallen victim to the squeeze since then. The business industry believes Ted Baker struggled during the pandemic and faced challenges with the shift to online shopping.
It comes after Carpetright was bought in a rescue deal by rival Tapi - but announced it will shut more than 200 stores and cut more than 1,000 jobs anyway. Flooring retailer Tapi has agreed to buy the Carpetright brand, intellectual property, 54 stores and two warehouses in a pre-pack administration deal.
Administrators at PwC said the deal will save more than 308 current jobs at Carpetright. However, the deal will not save the majority of the business, including its head office in Purfleet, Essex.