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Martin Rickett/PA Archive
Baby Steps
Mothercare is shutting stores after complaining about 'unsustainable' rents
The company has emerged from its examinership period.
MOTHERCARE HAS EMERGED from a three-month examinership with most of its Irish store network and local staff intact.
However three of its 18 outlets will close with job cuts among the staff who can’t be moved to alternate stores.
The retailer of baby and childrens’ products, which has run as a franchise of parent Mothercare UK for more than 20 years, requested an examiner be appointed to deal with “unsustainable” rents that were threatening its business.
Under the High Court-approved deal, it will close its stores at Blackrock and Jervis St in Dublin and its Cruises St outlet in Limerick early next year.
Mothercare Ireland said the affected staff would be moved to its remaining five stores in Dublin and second outlet in Limerick where possible, while the others would take redundancy.
Regrets
Owner David Ward said: “There is huge regret that a small number of stores were not viable and will close.”
The remaining stores on renegotiated leases offer the company a sustainable and secure future.”
Some 250 jobs will remain after the restructure, a net loss of 25 positions compared to its headcount earlier this year.
According to the company’s most-recent annual accounts, to the end of March 2014, it lost €11,193 on sales of €35.6 million for the 12-month period. It had an average of 301 staff during the year.
The figures were a slight improvement on a year earlier, when it lost €586,016 on sales of €36.9 million.
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