Mosaic fashions (Karen Millen, Principles) in administration

itsnever2lateisit?

IIRC the 'new' owners said they would honour all outstanding supplier debts. Guess they have to else no one in the rag trade will supply. LL's on the other hand are in a weak position ATM

fc123

Sunday Times; ''Stores tell landlords to get real''
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/construction_and_property/article5821100.ece

Retail landlords are running scared. They are being forced to slash rents to retain or attract tenants, especially in smaller shopping centres and high streets.
Mark Williams, head of retail at DTZ, the property consultant, said: “There has been a record change in rental values — they have fallen between 25% and 30% on average and 40% in some markets. There has been huge rental deflation at a record speed.
“This has never happened before in our lifetime. We have seen a five-year rent correction in just three months and the speed, efficiency and transparency of this downturn has taken everybody by surprise.”

Should read, some landlords......mine is up in the sky.


The following was interesting though......one of those funny facts that will stick in my brain forever.

Twenty years ago, retailers needed 175 shops to reach 50% of the population — but the rapid rise in out-of-town retail parks and regional shopping centres has combined with the explosion in online shopping during the past 15 years to slash that number to 75. For big high-street chains that means large sections of Britain are no longer profitable to trade in.

Mosaic brands started selling on asos last autumn...I stilll haven't fully worked out why yet; they have their own websites, their own shopping centre stores.......wanting to be part of a new shopping centre that doesn't have all the issues Real Life shops have perhaps?

fc123

twirlypinky wrote: »

I have to say, i was very relieved to see that Oasis isn't closing. Yet.

It will be interesting to see which ones stay and which ones go.

The annoying thing is that many stores will have rent reductions that will be 'Cloaked'. This means that any neighbour involved in a rent review won't be able to use the new lower rent as evidence in their own rental valuations.

Has happened to us. A chain a few doors down was on £100k pa. Had it reduced to £60k....but the reduction is not on my evidence so can't be used.

fc123

The trade press has a handy helpline for Landlords at the base of the feature.

Oasis, Karen Millen, Coast and Warehouse saved

2 March, 2009 | By Jessica Price Brown
Mosaic Fashions’ Oasis, Karen Millen, Warehouse and Coast brands have re-emerged from administration as a newly formed company called Aurora Fashions, in a deal led by Kaupthing and Mosaic Fashions’ management team.


Mosaic Fashions appointed Deloitte as administrator of the four womenswear chains today before Kaupthing and the Mosaic management team immediately bought them back.
The deal enabled Mosaic Fashions to complete a financial restructuring of the businesses, effectively a debt for equity swap, ending the difficulties it has had over repayment of its £400 million debt which was held by Kaupthing, the Icelandic bank which was put under the control of the Icelandic government in October.
The administration also enabled Mosaic Fashions to streamline its operations to help it better cope with the economic downturn.

“Our recent past has been difficult and is now behind us. From today we look forward to a new and exciting future as Aurora Fashions.”
Derek Lovelock, chief executive, Aurora Fashions

Aurora said in a statement “Management and Kaupthing Bank have agreed terms that secure the future of these four well-known fashion brands, restoring the group’s balance sheet to a healthy position and providing additional working capital. The new funding package will also enable the brands to develop and realise their potential. The four brands, Karen Millen, Coast, Warehouse and Oasis, will continue to share a common infrastructure and other essential functions that bring cost and operational synergies to the group as a whole.”

Shoe Studio Group and Principles are in administration. However the statement said that the sale of Shoe Studio was at an advanced stage and that there were negotiations over a sale of Principles. Deloitte is running both businesses and an annoucement is expected about a sale of both within days.
Aurora Fashions chief executive Derek Lovelock said: “We are delighted that the future of some of the UK’s best loved fashion businesses has been safeguarded and that we can now build upon the excellent reputation our brands already have with our customers”.
“We look forward to our continuing relationship with Kaupthing and also to the end of what has been a difficult chapter in our history. Most of all I would like to thank all our employees and our many suppliers and partners for their understanding and unswerving support, especially over recent months whilst the situation was being resolved. I am acutely aware this was only made possible because of the long-term nature of the relationships we have with them. They have been incredibly supportive, for which we are immensely grateful and we look forward to continuing our relationships with them.”
“Our recent past has been difficult and is now behind us. From today we look forward to a new and exciting future as Aurora Fashions”.
Aurora’s four fashion brands operate 1,377 stores across 45 countries. The group employs 8,700 people worldwide, including 7,861 people in the UK.
Helplines have been set up for creditors, landlords and suppliers:
01865 734696 – AURORA FASHIONS
01865 734697 - PRINCIPLES
01865 734698 – THE SHOE STUDIO GROUP

Phirefly

I think it may well be just another example of wheat-from-chaff. I used to work for a preferred supplier so know Mosaic well and there's nothing special about any of these brands that anyone'd really miss, and they've clearly been run irresponsibly. I'm genuinely sympathetic about the individuals directly affected, but I'm also excited about the opportunities created by the vacuum this sort of fallout creates.

Anyone been watching David Attenborough's fantastic Natures Great Events? (course not - LLL and PL on the other side - you property !!!!!! addicts are feasting your eyes on C4 on Wednesday nights) Well the latest episode was about the seasonal changes on the African grass plains. Once a year, bushfires rage through the savannah and raise the whole lot to the ground. Its a necessary evil. Thats how I see the current economic situation. Its a huge, painful, necessary purge.

fc123

Sorry to hijack Blonde headons thread with posts but I am listening to this on R4, link in the article

P Green speaks a lot of sense. He's also consolidating a lot of his brands into larger units (like BHS sites) then will close the smaller outlets.

Sir Philip Green cites speed above price as key to fashion success

• Published: 02 March 2009 12:13
• Author: [EMAIL="lisa.berwin@emap.com"]Lisa Berwin[/EMAIL]
• More by this Author
• Last Updated: 02 March 2009 13:24
• Reader Responses

Green said that speed is key for the fashion market in the downturn

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Sir Philip Green has said that speed and not price will be the key battleground when it comes to survival in the fashion market.



Speaking today on BBC Radio Four's "Straight to the Top" programme, the Arcadia owner said: "The supply chain is everything. We can turn like that, on a sixpence, and it is about reinventing that."
He added: "How much stock do we really need to own? When I visited America they run on 12-week stock. I want to run my business on six or seven-week stock."
He said that in the downturn, more than ever, customers need to be excited and want freshness and newness in their stores. "It is about speed to market, speed is more important than price," said Green.
Green pointed out that his Topshop chain receives 11,000 deliveries a week in the UK. "You've got to be nimble," said Green. "Never mind Strictly Come Dancing this is dancing around the clock."
He also warned of "significant inflation" that will hit the fashion retail market as part of the major world economic fall out.
Topshop's managing director Mary Holmer also spoke to the programme and said that in the downturn she believed that there was an opportunity to grow Topshop's market share saying that Topshop could benefit if shoppers who usually go to more expensive retailers trade down.

Doozergirl

Phirefly wrote: »

I think it may well be just another example of wheat-from-chaff. I used to work for a preferred supplier so know Mosaic well and there's nothing special about any of these brands that anyone'd really miss,

You lie. I'd really miss these shoes if they didn't exist. I got drunk in Selfridges and bought them after getting lost on the escalators. On the third time past the shoes, I decided it was fate. They also look better in real life. Sober even.

http://www.shoestudio.com/fcp/product/bertie/Bertie-Shoes/A-BOW/8816

vivatifosi

Out of interest, what impact will this have on Debenhams? Any ideas?

fc123

vivatifosi wrote: »

Out of interest, what impact will this have on Debenhams? Any ideas?

I'm hazy on Debenhams. One article said they were concerned about the concessions. Debs is loaded up with debt?
I personally find it a pretty grim shopping experience (compared to somewhere like Selfridges or Jon Lewis) but I know plenty who love it.

The bit I can't stand are those 25% off days which makes a bit of a mug of anyone buying at full price the rest of the time.

Loving the shoes Doozergirl.

I was in Selfridges 2 weeks back, wandering around, stroking handbags and collecting testers of miracle wrinkle cream. The new P Smith bags were to die for....I don't think I will ever own one either...but they smelt and looked lovely.

fc123

Phirefly wrote: »

I think it may well be just another example of wheat-from-chaff. I used to work for a preferred supplier so know Mosaic well and there's nothing special about any of these brands that anyone'd really miss, and they've clearly been run irresponsibly. I'm genuinely sympathetic about the individuals directly affected, but I'm also excited about the opportunities created by the vacuum this sort of fallout creates.

Anyone been watching David Attenborough's fantastic Natures Great Events? (course not - LLL and PL on the other side - you property !!!!!! addicts are feasting your eyes on C4 on Wednesday nights) Well the latest episode was about the seasonal changes on the African grass plains. Once a year, bushfires rage through the savannah and raise the whole lot to the ground. Its a necessary evil. Thats how I see the current economic situation. Its a huge, painful, necessary purge.

K Millen and Coast could merge easily...they blend together.

Warehouse is a shadow of it's original concept back in the 80's when Jeff Banks set it up.

Oasis seems to have put up prices but the quality has stayed the same.

Warehouse and Oasis could merge quite easily too...no real distinction from each other productwise.

It's the google designing look coming to the end of it's time. Always room for some but not to have the whole of Real Life land shops flogging similar versions of several looks each season.