Just 27% of Austin Reed shops dubbed attractive prior to failure

Austin Reed fails: All 120 of the menswear chain shops will close by the end of the month with 1,000 jobs losses

Ian Gavan/Getty Images for Austin Reed

1 June 2016

Less than a third of Austin Reed shops were considered extremely attractive to rivals ahead of its collapse into administration, new data has shown.

All 120 of the menswear chain shops will close by the end of the month with 1,000 jobs losses, administrator AlixPartners said yesterday. It is winding down as no viable offers had been received for the business.

Research compiled for the Evening Standard, shows the difficulty the administrator would have had in attracting offers for the property portfolio.

Cushman & Wakefield said only 27% of the stores being marketed were seen as attractive because they were “prime or easy to let”, while 10% would struggle to let in the current market.

Meanwhile Colliers International pointed out that 56% of the estate is located in parts of the UK which are not the prime focus for fashion operators.

Matt Thompson, head of retail strategy at Colliers said: “The secondary properties will be much harder to re-let and affected landlords will need to be flexible and creative to get their space reoccupied.”

Five Austin Reed concessions have been sold to the owners of the Edinburgh Woollen Mill, and it has also bought the Austin Reed and Country Casual brands.

But AlixPartners said yesterday: “Regrettably and despite a sales process supported by creditors over approximately five weeks, no viable offers were received for the sale of the rest of the business including the store estate.”

Property agent GCW is advising on the real estate portfolio.

MORE ABOUT

administration

Austin Reed

Just 27% of Austin Reed shops dubbed attractive prior to failure

Read More