Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
Homewares and furniture retailer The Pier has gone into administration – the latest victim of the economic slump.
Mazars have been appointed joint administrators of the business, which was founded in 1989 by the late Alison Richards and now operates 31 stores and 17 concessions throughout the UK.
The jobs of 400 staff, including 57 employees at The Pier’s head office in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, are now at risk.
“The company has encountered difficulties due to the harsh trading conditions associated with the current economic climate,” said joint administrator Rod Weston. “While in administration the business will continue to trade as normal. We are now reviewing options and are seeking a buyer for the business as a going concern.”
The Pier, owned by Icelandic group Lagerinn, opened its first stores outside the UK, in Reykjavik and Riga, Latvia, a year ago.
Only two weeks ago acting managing director and buying and merchandising director Silvia Hernandez told Retail Week magazine that trade had been going “fantastically well” at the stores.
