Beales creditors owed almost £18m, Barbour, Phase Eight, Hilfiger on the list

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Mar 31, 2020

Unsecured creditors of failed department stores chain Beales are owed £17.6 million, administrator KPMG has said. The company went under owing money to fashion concessions and suppliers, as well as its staff and the landlords of its stores. 

And while they should get some money back, KPMG said it couldn’t confirm the amount they’d receive, nor the timing.

The company’s remaining stores closed nearly two weeks ago, a fortnight ahead of plan due to the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

KPMG said some of the amounts owed include over £200,000 each to Barbour and Craghoppers, and more than £100,000 each to Phase Eight and Regatta. It also owed over £70,000 each to Arcadia’s Dorothy Perkins, TFG’s Hobbs and Tommy Hilfiger, while Oasis, was owed just under £64,000, and Hotter Shoes, over £57,000.

Beales filed for administration earlier this year after weak trading over the Christmas period and the heavy weight of business rates (which saw it paying over £1 million more than it should have done) made it impossible to continue.

Its business rates bill was the straw that broke the camel’s back. But given the weak state of the business and the urgent need to find a buyer before it went into administration, it’s unlikely the chain could have survived the coronavirus shutdown. Stronger businesses than Beales are currently taking urgent measures to conserve cash and allow them to survive until the lockdown is over. Analysts have said some businesses probably won't re-open.