Homewares retailer Feather & Black has followed its stablemate Multiyork into administration after being “hit by the slowdown in consumer spending”.
Currently trading from 25 stores in the UK and employing 123 people, Feather & Black has called in administrators Duff & Phelps to aid them in finding a buyer.
This comes just a week after its sister retailer within the Wade Furniture Group, Multiyork, announced that 547 jobs were at risk as it also could no longer “meet on-going liabilities”.
Any orders placed before November 27 will reportedly be honoured and customers will be contacted in due course.
Earlier this week Feather & Black’s co-founder Robbie Feather was appointed as the new chief executive of department store giant Fenwick, marking the first ever chief executive who is not part of the department store chain’s founding family.
He will give up his role at Sainsbury’s Argos and start his new role in January.
“The joint administrators are trading Feather & Black in administration in the short term with a view to finding a purchaser for the business as a going concern,” joint administrator Allan Graham said.
“We are confident that a buyer will be found and encourage any interested parties to come forward.
“The latest CBI survey out late last week reported that UK retail sales bounced back in November after falling sharply the previous month. Many retailers have been hit by the slowdown in consumer spending.
“With inflation rising faster than wages, consumers are beginning to feel the pinch and have cut back on their household budgets. As a result of these tough trading conditions, Feather & Black Ltd could no longer meet on-going liabilities.”
