Following the news that historic department store multiple Beales fell into administration on Monday (January 20), the company’s 23 UK stores are continuing to trade during the administration process with, as yet, no closures announced, although the store’s website is currently offline. KPMG has been appointed as administrator.
In the financial year to March 2019, Beales reported that its losses had almost doubled to £3.1m, with the company’s owner, Tony Brown, stating that huge business rates bills and poor trading conditions were major factors in the chain’s downfall. He bought the business in a management buyout in October 2018, but put it on the market in December 2019, having tried to secure rent reductions to reduce costs.
Will Wright, partner at KPMG and joint administrator, said: “For over a hundred years, Beales has been a stalwart of the high street in market towns up and down the UK, but like countless similar retailers, has found trading in recent times to be incredibly tough.”
He continued: “With the impact of high rents and rates exacerbated by disappointing trading over the Christmas period, and extensive discussions around additional investment proving unsuccessful, there were no other available options but to place the company into administration.”
One of the UK’s oldest stores, Beale’s was founded in Bournemouth in 1881 by John Elmes Beales.
Top: Department store Beale’s officially went into administration this week.
