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The High Court has appointed joint provisional liquidators for four Irish operating companies that are part of the UK’s Arcadia Street fashion group.
The companies, including Topshop / Topman Ireland, collectively employ 487 people in 14 stores in the Republic and also have concession stands at various locations.
The sale of the Irish operations is expected to be obtained as part of a general sale of the Arcadia group and the intention is for Irish stores to continue trading under interim liquidators until Christmas to maximize the value of winter fashion stocks, the court was told. .
The request for the appointment came on Monday evening, immediately after the appointment of interim trustees for Arcadia Group (AGL) in the UK.
AGL owns the Topshop, Topman, Dorothy Perkins, Wallis Retail Ireland Ltd, Miss Selfridge, Evans, Burton and Outfit brands, and they are marketed in over 500 stores in the UK and employ over 13,000.
John Lavelle BL, instructed by Artur Cox’s lawyers, told the court that Irish companies are completely dependent on AGL for trading and cannot operate independently of the Arcadia group as a whole.
UK entities own the relevant trademarks and intellectual property rights, operate the online platforms and own the leasing interests in the premises used by Irish companies, the court heard.
In an evening session, Judge Michael Quinn accepted the request to appoint Ken Fennell and James Anderson of Deloitte as joint interim liquidators.
The companies are Arcadia Group Multiples Ireland Ltd, Topshop / Topman Ireland Ltd, Wallis Retail Ireland and Miss Selfridge Retail Ireland.
The judge was informed that the companies are unable to pay their debts for reasons including the insolvency of the Arcadia group as a whole.
Businesses had encountered difficulties before this year for reasons that included the shift to online sales and increased competition, and those difficulties were compounded by the Covid 19 pandemic.
The impact on Arcadia’s Irish operations was “particularly severe” with Irish stores, which were closed for 23 weeks, and revenues plummeted by as much as 60%, the lawyer said.
Because the online sales were carried out through UK entities, Irish companies did not generate any income from those sales and all four companies posted losses in the financial year to the end of August 2020.
The main assets of the companies are the sums owed by other companies of the Arcadia group but, due to the fact that there is an ongoing insolvency process, the probability of making these debts between groups is limited, said the lawyer.
The companies also dispute the scope of a lawsuit received from the pension plan’s trustees, the court was told.
Judge Quinn said he was satisfied with appointing the joint provisional liquidators and returned the petition to Dec. 21.S t.
The appointment of interim liquidators was said to facilitate the disposal of Irish assets and potentially preserve employment, the judge noted.
A ‘unique feature’ of this app is the hope that a UK transaction will retain business and jobs, but if that doesn’t happen, running shops during the winter months would be a better option for employees and creditors. he said.
The appointment would facilitate the reopening of stores here on Tuesday, he added.
Online editors
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