Business

Advisers brought in to speed up Monsoon and Accessorize closures

Company preparing plans for potential company voluntary arrangement in the UK

The group has closed almost 40 stores in the last two years, as well as relocating and downsizing others. Photograph: iStock

Mon Apr 15 2019 - 15:08

Monsoon and Accessorize could be the latest stores to disappear from high streets, after the owner of both brands called in advisers to speed up its closure process.

The parent company of the chains has brought in Deloitte to prepare plans for a possible Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA), the same process through which retailers New Look and Mothercare closed stores last year in the UK.

Any proposals are also likely to include rent reductions on Monsoon and Accessorize’s joint estate of almost 270 sites.

A spokesman for Monsoon Accessorize said: “The UK retail trading environment is tough and we are continuing to look at options to reduce our overall costs as we restructure the business in the UK and internationally.

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“We have made no secret of the fact that we have steadily reduced our store portfolio in recent years and shall continue to do so as leases expire. We are looking at options to accelerate these store closures.”

Earlier this year it emerged that Monsoon Accessorize was seeking rent cuts on some of its sites, but a spokesman denied that a CVA was on the cards at the time.

The CVA would form part of long-running efforts to slim down its store estate as sales move increasingly online.

It has closed almost 40 stores in the last two years, as well as relocating and downsizing others.

The most recent available accounts for Drillgreat, the holding company for Monsoon and Accessorize, show that the company made a loss before tax of £10.5 million (€12.16 million) in the year to August 26th 2017.

The company’s Irish operations are controlled by the UK parent company. The Irish arm - Monsoon Accessorize Ireland Limited - recorded a profit before tax of €305,368 in the year ended August 26th 2017, down from €1.05 million the previous year. Its turnover also dipped to €12.9 million. – PA

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