Edinburgh Woollen Mill falls into administration, 2,500 jobs at risk

The fashion and homewares retailer EWM and stablemate Ponden Home have appointed FRP partners Tony Wright and Alastair Massey as joint administrators.

The group has blamed low consumer confidence and footfall of its core demographic of senior shoppers and tourists during the coronavirus pandemic for the demise of two of its retail chains.

Upon appointment, 750 jobs at The Edinburgh Woollen Mill and 116 roles at Ponden Home have been made redundant with immediate effect.

The Edinburgh Woollen Mill currently operates 384 stores across the UK and 2,571 staff, while Ponden Home has 73 stores and 329 colleagues.

In the weeks prior to administration, 56 Edinburgh Woollen Mill stores and eight Ponden Home stores and concessions were permanently closed.

The two retailers will continue to trade online and in store, in accordance with national lockdown regulations across the UK.

EWM Group and its other subsidiaries, including Jaeger and Peacocks, are not part of the administration.

Joint administrator Tony Wright said: “Recent months have proven extremely challenging for many retailers, even those that were trading well before the pandemic, including the teams at Edinburgh Woollen Mill and Ponden Home.

“The administrations will provide some further protection while we continue our search for buyers to secure the long-term futures for both businesses.

“Regrettably, the impact of Covid-19 on the brands’ core customer base and tighter restrictions on trading mean that the current structure of the businesses is unsustainable and has resulted in redundancies. We are working with all affected members of staff to provide the appropriate support.”