// Harveys and Bensons for Beds up for sale
// The move puts 2700 jobs at risk
// Parent company Alteri Investors drafted in accountancy firm BDO to handle an auction
The owner of Harveys and Bensons for Beds has reportedly put the furniture chains up for sale, putting the jobs of 2700 people at risk.
Alteri Investors drafted in accountancy firm BDO to handle an auction, with funded takeover proposals required by the end of next week, Sky News reported.
It is thought that Alteri was interested in retaining ownership of Bensons for Beds itself, which could mean the Harveys chain would have to go through an administration process.
READ MORE:
- Bensons for Beds & Harveys are no longer owned by Steinhoff
- Retail Gazette Loves: Harveys & Bensons for Bed’s campaign for mental health
The timing of the sale process comes as a surprise as both chains only had a change of hands in November, when former parent company Blue Group was sold off by Steinhoff to Alteri Investors for an undisclosed sum.
The sale also comes as the coronavirus crisis continues to have a domino effect on the retail industry.
Bensons for Beds is the largest bed retailer in the UK by store number, and Harveys the largest furniture specialist in the UK by store number.
In total, Harveys and Bensons for Beds trade from 269 stores across the UK.
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38 Comments. Leave new
I work for this company at the moment and my question is where are these stories coming from as we have had no internal communication with alteri to confirm or deny this story???
Its on sky news. I’m one of the delivery drivers and we are waiting for stienhoff to tell us if we get kept on
Waiting for someone to get in touch still waiting for order of lounge furniture to be delivered down to Portsmouth . Was ordered and paid for in February. My partner works during there phone hours and I called to find out but when I did manage to get through they won’t talk to me as paperwork not in my name . Ridiculous .
From Guernsey Channel Islands
Very surprising.
Not.
We have an order for a pre packed bedroom wardrobes coming in early April, would the stock be in the UK already
We also have an order of prepacked bedroom furniture for £2000 due for delivery 30 March (ordered mid February) and have just receive a message telling us deliveries have been postponed for 3 weeks due to Corona Virus! Will Bensons cancel the order and give a refund?
No companies fault they are closed
Everywhere non essential forced is close, put your clothes in a a cardboard box, people are dying! Bit more of a concern then a delay
i got a email from harveys to day all is well if they have my order in stock will send it
Hugely disappointing for staff. Question whether Alteri carried out proper due diligence prior to the acquisition of the brands.
We have an order for 2 beds from Bensons and they cancelled the delivery the day before it was due. We have paid in full and now the company are not answering calls. Will we be refunded?
Their closed
I went into Harvey’s this morning 29/June 2020 a member of staff told me it’s only the Aintree shop that’s closing.
There should be a full investigation in to this company and look at all the wrong doings bonuses pay outs etc
Very interested to know an update on what has happened regarding the quick sale. Appalling upper management and terrible place to work.
Feel sorry for the staff who will be out of work, but not the company, good riddance
Interesting to have an update on the sale or is this now all on hold due to the corona virus?
Agreed, some strange things happened over the years, I feel for the staff but the upper management can rot for me
Disgraceful company. Will be glad to see the end of them
When the new company took over all the staff had to sign new contracts in which they will lose out on redundancy. It was either take it or leave it. Pretty shit thing to do on the staff.
That’s not true changes on the contract was not to any other terms and conditions only the company name change to Blue Group from Steinhoff. Redundancy rights etc remained the same
We are awaiting our 3 piece suite from Harvey’s ordered Dec 2019 , we know there are no delivery’s at the moment , but also no one is working on customer service,as we want to cancel our order due to false advertising, our suite is coming from China.
we’ve been waiting since the beginning of January, where due beginning of april, then moved to end of this month and now beginning of next month, also coming on the slow boat from china, did you try and cancel your order ?
So many issues with this company, corrupt upper management, get rid!
a good job too. I hope SCS jack it in as well. Thousands of people have been sold shoddy foreign crap from these companies, and the after sales services is a joke.
New company way always going to buy and flip this quickly they bought it just before the main winter sale to make a fast injection of cash and now want out, they want to try and keep the bensons side as harvey’s furniture average wait for a sofa is 18 weeks unfortunately I think it’s just a matter of time before both brands will crash out of the market place. Fire sale due this week apparently, feeling very sad for all those people who have been working there thinking the new company was a safe pair of hands how wrong they were.
and no management has had the decency to talk to us and tell us what is going on
Thank goodness
I work for Harvey’s nothing been said to us but very concerned hopefully this is not the case
So do I! I’m worried as they haven’t even told us anything.
I was a delivery driver and is in consultation now and don’t know nothing and could be made redundant
No signs of harvey’s stores opening..? I asked a bensons 4 beds member of staff and they we’re very quick to change the subject when I asked about my freinds sofa that was on order with harvey’s, this didn’t fill me with any confidence strange only the Benson 4 beds stores are open and not the harvey’s branches with bensons 4 beds in them… Has anyone got any ideas if and when they will open again?
Such a shame that the greed, shit quality and despicable customer service threatens all these jobs. As an exception, Zain from Leeds branch of Benson for beds for lying to get my sale and causing over a year of misery still ongoing!
I worked at b4b last year and was totally disgusted at all that was going on at ground level, no proper management whatsoever!!, treated like crap, long hours, rubbish pay and the First £500 of any commission earned was ‘snatched back’ I am well out of this terribly run business and will not be surprised when it all goes bust, soon I hope.
I was a delivery driver and is in consultation now and don’t know nothing and could be made redundant
What a surprise my bed is knackered after 6months waiting on furniture ombudsman to reply
Too much sex?
had 3 settees on order from the 9/1/20, original delivery date was 12 to 14 weeks, eventually moved to 24/6/20 and has just been moved to 6/7/20, will I ever get them ? only paid small deposit (luckily) can I cancel order and get refund ?