Greater than a thousand excessive road jobs can be put in danger this week when Bodycare, the well being and sweetness retailer, is pressured to name in directors.
Bodycare, which specialises in promoting fragrances, toiletries, cosmetics and skincare merchandise, employs about 1,500 individuals and trades from practically 150 shops throughout the nation.
The chain’s collapse into insolvency proceedings is prone to set off an additional effort by Interpath to discover a purchaser for elements of the enterprise.
The corporate is owned by Baaj Capital, a household workplace run by Jas Singh.
Baaj, which is taken into account a possible candidate to purchase Bodycare again from the directors, counts In The Model amongst its different investments.
The agency additionally tried to take over The Authentic Manufacturing facility Store earlier this 12 months earlier than its supply was trumped by Modella Capital, one other specialist retail investor.
Bodycare’s deepening disaster comes simply weeks after the retailer secured a £7m debt facility to purchase it short-term respiration area.
The ability was secured towards Bodycare’s retail stock, in response to an announcement in July.
Bodycare was established by Graham and Margaret Blackledge in Skelmersdale in 1970, and sells branded merchandise made by the likes of L’Oreal, Nivea and Elizabeth Arden.
The chain was worthwhile earlier than the pandemic, however like many retailers, misplaced thousands and thousands of kilos within the monetary years instantly after it hit.
Bodycare acquired monetary assist from the taxpayer within the type of a multimillion-pound mortgage issued beneath one of many Treasury’s pandemic funding schemes.
The chain is run by retail veteran Tony Brown, who held senior roles at BHS and Beales, the now-defunct division retailer teams.
Bodycare is the most recent excessive road chain to face collapse this 12 months, amid intensifying complaints from the trade about tax will increase introduced in final autumn’s Finances.
In current weeks, River Island and Poundland each narrowly prevented administration after profitable creditor approval for restructuring plans involving retailer closures and job losses.
Baaj has been contacted for remark, whereas Interpath declined to remark.
