Breaking news: Deloitte appointed administrator to Woolworths
High street stalwart joins MFI as latest victim of slowdown
Woolworths’ board is due to confirm it will enter administration at a
meeting at 6pm this evening with
Deloitte
expected to be appointed administrators, the BBC has reported.
The Big Four firm will be appointed as administrator to the store chain and
also to Entertainment UK, which supplies books and DVDs to supermarket groups.
The news followed confimation earlier this evening that DIY retailer had also
entered administration, which will be handled by mid-tier firm MCR.
Woolworths’ shares were suspended this morning and despite the intervention
of business secretary Peter Mandelson, BBC business editor Robert Peston has
said that today’s efforts to deal with its £385m of debt were unsuccessful.
‘Woolworths joint venture with the BBC, 2 Entertain, will not go into
administration. It is owned by Woolworths’ parent company, which will not go
into administration,’ the BBC reports.
The collapse is likely to lead to the closure of hundreds of stores across
the UK and will put tens of thousands of jobs under threat.