Furniture firm Walmsley is in crisis for third time
A furniture store chain which has its headquarters in the region has gone into administration for the third time in seven years because of the economic climate.
Walmsley Furnishing has 24 stores around the country, including Bradford Street in Walsall and the Mander Centre, Wolverhampton, employing 105 workers. Julie Swan and Mark Phillips of insolvency practitioners PCR have been appointed as joint administrators. The stores are still trading and there have so far been no redundancies.
Walmsley last went into administration in September 2011 when it had 60 stores and 25 were sold, along with is website, to turnaround company SKG Capital in a pre-pack deal for £250,000. Town centre stores in Dudley and Stafford were among those which closed at that time.
Walmsley had previously been bought by Unibrook in 2005 when it also went into administration. Unibrook was a new company set up by a group of private investors and members of Walmsley's previous management team then based in Preston with around 100 stores nationwide.
Mr Phillips, a licensed insolvency practitioner at PCR, said: "Unfortunately Walmsley has, like so many other retail businesses, suffered from the economic recession that has blighted the British high street.
"We are currently investigating to what extent we will be able to fulfil orders, however this is dependent on our ability to acquire stock from third party suppliers. I would, however, stress that it will take some time for us to assess the situation."
The chain's head office operates from the superstore site in Walsall. Six of its remaining stores are in the Midlands region. Walmsley was founded in 1933.
Have you been affected by the Walmsley crisis? Call our newsdesk on 01902 319410.
A customer helpline has been set up by the administrators to answer questions on 01922 704113.
