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MFI goes under

In the last half an hour, MFI - the UK's largest furniture store - has gone into administration and, according to Robert Peston, Woolworth's will do the same tonight.

A quick scan of businesses directories indicate that there are 63 Woolworth's shops in Wales and 9 MFI stores, employing around 1500 people directly.

As discussed earlier this week, any closures will have a massive impact on consumer confidence in the short term and will seriously hit retail company shares tomorrow morning, possibly causing one or two other chain stores to go into deep trouble.

Comments

Anonymous said…
woolies have gone.....
November 26, 2008 6:27 pm
Anonymous said…
plus the job losses in Llantrisant - another 300,Ive just blogged and asked if WAG could basically shift their arses
November 26, 2008 7:30 pm
Anonymous said…
if this crisis and the pathetic response doesn't show that the WAG is run for Welsh Labour's benefit nothing will.

I feel sorry for those losing thier jobs because WAG doesn't care about them, just fend for yourself in a place with fewer jobs is the thrust of the response.

Will it ever change?
November 26, 2008 8:35 pm
Armchair Sceptic said…
Ironically, Woolworths' financial situation is probably not as bad as that of the UK after the PBR.
November 26, 2008 8:57 pm
Anonymous said…
What is happening in this mad, mad world? Suddenly we seem to be drowning in a sea of company collapse such as I cannot remember. Names that are household and indeed institutes. Where will it end?. Is it a good thing that this has happened?
Is there anything that the government could have done? Gordon Brown is speaking loud and clear now but I don't here much from WAG.
How are small businesses managing? I feel that they aren't seeing too much of a problem right now but the domino effect will knock them off balance soon. How many are prepared? How many are on the bring of collapse if sales fall just a small percent?
Tonight a local motor main dealer stated that they are having few sales but when they do get them they are having delivery problems. Other local major industries are saying their order book is the lowest ever.
Right now we need unity and leadership. I guess the former depends on the latter. Will we get the latter?
November 27, 2008 12:04 am
Anonymous said…
SME's are quite because they have no voice, who cares about a business employing two people. But multiply that by 600 such businesses quietly going to the wall, that is a wave waiting to hit
November 27, 2008 7:07 pm
Anonymous said…
The FSB will not thank you for that comment about SME's having no voice. Underwriting finances to businessess maybe the only thing that Brown can now do to help, but then there has to be some control on this to stop fraud. The banks reluctance to support SME's is creating business chaos.
I do not see the point in having a dig at WAG because there is very little else that they can do. Having said that, they need to make some more radical announcements in the next week at least to show willing.
November 28, 2008 1:58 pm
Professor Dylan Jones-Evans said…
What comment? My company is a member of the FSB - is yours?

WAG has £1.5 billion more than the majority of other regions of the Uk. Of course they can do something - if not, what is the point of devolution?
November 29, 2008 12:24 pm
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