Axe swings at Comet as 330 staff made redundant

The job losses include 99 at Comet’s Rickmansworth head office.

Another 53 have been lost in Hull, and 42 at the retailer’s call centre in Clevedon.

No jobs have been lost so far in Comet’s 236 stores, which continue to trade following the launch of a Sale yesterday, nor distribution centres. Deloitte said that no more redundancies are planned at present.

Discussions are ongoing with “a number” of parties interested in buying parts of Comet’s business.

Comet joint administrator Neville Kahn of Deloitte said: “We remain extremely grateful to the staff and management for their continued loyalty and support at what is clearly a very difficult time.

 “We are in discussions with a number of parties who have expressed interest in parts of the business and we continue to work hard to preserve jobs.” 

He said that the clearance promotion yesterday has gone well. “We are pleased with the response so far, as the discounts have helped generate record levels of sales,” said Kahn.

It is thought Shop Direct is interested in acquiring the brand.