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M&Co announces closure of all stores with 2,000 jobs to be lost

By Nagasunder in UK Business News, posted February 6, 2023

Fashion company M&Co was unable to get any "financed, deliverable offers," and as a result, over 2,000 jobs will be lost.

The company went into administration last year, and, has been searching for a buyer since then.

However, since M&Co was unable to find a buyer, all of the stores will be closing.

The job cuts are going ahead despite of a buyout by the Peterborough-based AK Retail Holdings, which also owns maternity clothing line Bump It Up, Yours Clothing, Long Tall Sally, and BadRhino intervened to save the business on Friday.

The company has bought the M&Co name, but the actual stores were not part of the deal.

Staff said stores would remain open until Easter before beginning the closing process in a statement shared on social media.

The statement read: “Unfortunately we haven’t received the news we would have hoped for during our administration period, and would like to share this news with you.

“As we haven’t received any funded, deliverable offers that would result in the transfer of the company’s stores or staff to a potential buyer, this means that all of our stores will close.

“The M&Co ‘brand’ has been purchased, but unfortunately this does not include a future for our stores, website or staff.

“We will trade all of our stores until Easter, and then begin the close down process. We will update you closer to the time of our actual closing date.

“We hope you will appreciate this is also a very difficult time for staff working in the stores and we ask for respect and understanding when raising an issue. We thank you all for your continuous support, and we hope to see you all over the next couple of months.”

Teneo was named administrator by the Renfrewshire-based retail chain in December. It has 1,910 employees spread throughout 170 stores.

According to the company, in-store purchases can still be returned for exchanges on items up to the same amount within 14 days after the transaction, but loyalty cards and gift cards won't be honoured during the administration.

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Additionally, no new members can join the loyalty programme, and transactions are no longer eligible for loyalty points.

While the usage of gift cards for online orders has been banned, no new gift cards are being sold, and no balances are being added to existing gift cards.

The company was established in 1834 and was originally a pawnbroker.

It was called Mackays, and started focusing on clothing in 1953.

It became M&Co in 2005.

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