Peacocks named as preferred bidder for stricken Bonmarché

(Sharecast News) - Philip Day's fast-fashion chain Peacocks has been named preferred bidder for collapsed womenswear retailer Bonmarché, as the administrator flagged 30 stores that are to close before Christmas.
FRP Advisory said it had received "numerous" offers from interested parties for all or parts of the business, but Peacocks had been selected as the preferred bidder. FRP said the offer was regarded as "the best opportunity to maximise returns for creditors and sell the business as a going concern".

The deal is subject to further due diligence and discussions between Peacocks and landlords, however.

Should the deal go ahead, it will see Bonmarché come full circle as a Peacocks-owned business. The retailer was part of the Peacocks group until Peacocks itself went into administration in 2012 and it was sold off.

Peacocks was bought out of administration by Edinburgh Woollen Mill, which is owned by retail tycoon Day. He was also the majority shareholder in Bonmarché but its collapse into administration last month wiped out his £5.7m stake.

FRP also said it had identified 30 "underperforming or unsustainable" stores that will close by 11 December with staff potentially made redundant. The move will put up to 240 jobs at risk.

The remaining 285 stores will continue to trade.

FRP said that the "vast majority" of open stores are expected to be part of the deal with Peacocks but conceded: "The future of all remaining stores cannot be assured at this time and remain subject to negotiation between any future purchaser and landlords, given the period of historical market difficulty on the high street."

A Peacocks spokesperson said: "We are working very hard to reach a deal that secures the future of the company and greatest number of jobs. But given the unprecedented pressures the business continues to face, it is also important to recognise this cannot be assured at this time."

Day made an initial cut-price offer for all of Bonmarché in April, but it was rejected for undervaluing the business and its future prospects.