Job fears at clothing firm Viyella

Fears were mounting last night over the security of almost 700 jobs after another high street chain collapsed into administration.

Following a lunchtime meeting with staff, bosses of iconic women’s retailer Viyella announced they had “no alternative” but to place the firm in the hands of Birmingham administrators Poppleton (corr) & Appleby.

Due to the continued economic gloom surrounding the retail sector, Viyella said it could no longer be confident about its future prospects.

The firm has two stores in Wales – in Llandudno’s Victoria Centre and Monmouth’s Monnow Street – and a further 105 shops and concessions across the UK.

The future of its 645 staff now hangs in the balance but administrator Andrew Turpin said he was hopeful a buyer could be found.

Mr Turpin said: “The Viyella brand is trusted and respected both at home and abroad, and we expect that the prospect of a sale of the brand and the infrastructure will raise significant interest amongst other retailers. Indeed we have already been contacted by interested parties.

“We are currently assessing all options and, for the time being, allowing all the existing stores to continue to trade while a buyer is sought for the business.”

Source : WalesOnline
[tags : recession bankrupt collapse retrenchment financial news collapse stagnation economic slowdown financial collapse world recession global recession layoff job cut]