Menu
 
Home | News | EWM is sold but not all jobs will be saved
 
News | 14th January 2021
 

EWM is sold but not all jobs will be saved

 
 
The former EWM headquarters at Waverley Mills, Langholm
 

CRITICISM has been levelled at the way Tuesday’s sale of high street retailer Edinburgh Woollen Mill has been processed.

The deal was hailed as having saved hundreds of jobs at EWM and Ponden Home, which have been in administration since November 5.

They were formerly owned by billionaire Philip Day, the sole owner of Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group.

The joint administrators announced that the businesses were sold to Purepay Retail Limited, which was backed by an international investor consortium.

Tony Wright and Alastair Massey, partners at specialist business advisory firm FRP, have marketed the two businesses for sale.

Purepay, a secured creditor to the businesses, has acquired all the remaining stock, along with the head office site and distribution centre in Carlisle.

The administrator said Purepay would operate 246 stores under licence from both brands.

The corresponding 1,347 store staff will transfer to the acquirer, alongside all 72 head office and 34 distribution staff.

The remaining 85 EWM stores and 34 Ponden Home stores have been permanently closed.

The roles from these stores, including 358 EWM staff and 127 Ponden Home staff, have been made redundant.

Mr Wright said: “We have extensively marketed these businesses and this transaction gives the best chance to save stores and jobs and meets our own statutory obligations to creditors.

“With such little visibility on future trading conditions in UK retail, we regret that not all EWM and Ponden Home could be rescued.

“This has resulted in a significant number of redundancies at a particularly challenging time of year and period of economic uncertainty.

“We have a team working hard to support all those affected as we help make applications for redundancy payments.”

Jaeger Retail Limited and Peacocks Stores Limited remain in administration.

David Stevenson, founder of EWM and chairman of Ashleybank Investments, represents one of the creditors of the EWM administration.

He said: “Steve Simpson, Philip Day’s right-hand man and now the ‘new owner of EWM’ was in touch with us yesterday to tell us how delighted he was to have secured a future for the business and, working with Philip Day, he had agreed terms for the purchase.

“He didn’t say what they were.

“I was then surprised to be told that he had committed to acquire only the online part of the business and not taken responsibility for the stores.

“One hundred and fifty stores have already been closed and this process of closing stores will continue during the current lockdown so exactly what the final outcome will be is very muddy indeed.

“It’s certainly a very different picture to the one painted in the press releases.

“I’m afraid I’m more than cynical about the way this process has been engineered and the outcome looks very similar to the one I forecast when administrators were appointed.

“The unsecured creditors, of which there are hundreds, have been hung out to dry and will receive tuppence in the pound, while the shareholders will come out a lot, lot better.

“To cap it all, the new owner asks us “to support him going forward to create a more positive future of both of us”.  He must be joking!”

The EWM Group is selling Jaeger to Marks & Spencer.

Richard Price, managing director of M&S Clothing & Home, said: “We have set out our plans to sell complementary third-party brands as part of our Never the Same Again programme to accelerate our transformation and turbocharge online growth.

“In line with this, we have bought the Jaeger brand and are in the final stages of agreeing the purchase of product and supporting marketing assets from the administrators of Jaeger Retail Limited.

“We expect to fully complete later this month.”

Dumfriesshire MP David Mundell and MSP Oliver Mundell have cautiously welcomed the deal which may secure some EWM jobs and branches.

They said: “This appears to be a complex agreement which we firmly hope will bring some certainty for those employed by EWM on both sides of the border.

“We will seek clarification about the future of EWM’s remaining retail sites in Dumfriesshire and historical assets such as the long-boarded-up former Moffat Mercury Inn.”

 
 
Would you like to support us?

The Eskdale and Liddesdale Advertiser is our community owned local newspaper and even in today’s troubled times, we aim to bring you local news and articles in an impartial, responsible and factual way.

We hope you have enjoyed reading this free article but we need your support so we can keep delivering quality journalism that’s open and independent and keeps you up to date with what is happening in Eskdale and Liddesdale.

Every reader’s contribution, however big or small, is so valuable to us.
 
 
‘Owned by the Community...Published for the Community’
Do you have a story?

Please get in touch if you have a story or article you would like to see published.

Related Articles

Return of full Post Office is first-class news for town

Elizabeth and team are all trained up and ready to…

 

Goat petition reaches MPs

4,000 anti-cull signatures handed over Conservative politicians John Lamont MP…

 

A healing moorland…

Sphagnum moss wound dressings during the Second World War By…

 

Heilan’ Coos and Fell Ponies join the Tarras Valley family

The cows and ponies will play their part in restoring…

 

NHS D&G announces massive funding shortfall

Board seeks public support to manage £33.6 million funding gap…

 

4,000 signature petition to be handed to politicians

Oxygen Conservation’s disregard prompted massive response A local petition with…

 

Scottish Woodlands plan ' voluntary' Environmental Impact Assessment for Warblaw

Scottish Woodlands, which has been developing the woodland creation design…

 

As the last bank closes, a Cash Hub opens

Temporary facility will open in Holmspun with better hours of…

 

NatureScot tells the E&L “culling the goats is legal”

Oxygen Conservation lays the blame at Government’s door Part of…

 

New health team sought for Canonbie Surgery

Husband and wife medical partners to hang up their stethoscopes…

 

18-month trial of 20mph has begun

A7 Action Group discuss various issues The A7 Action Group…

 

No caravans or motorhomes to cross Milntown bridge

Far-reaching effect on the community as Ewes Water site has…

 

Confirmation received that cull has already begun

Gilly Fraser delves further into the feral goat debacle Oxygen…

 

Some beautiful moments in LAODS’ latest show

Annie Get Your Gun is chock-full of love, laughter and…

 

2025 Common Riding AGM

New faces in official roles he trustees and members of…

 

Parking restrictions and 20mph limit from next week

By the end of March, the speed limit throughout the…

 

A well-used community resource for over 30 years

Mairi Telford Jammeh takes a look at what goes on…

 

Goat cull company tackled by councillor

Meeting with CEO of Oxygen Conservation requested Councillor Male has…

 

Wheatley has “No plans for housing in Eskdale

Scotland’s second largest social landlord is also “not considering the…

 

Langholm Town Band do well in regionals

By Christine Calvert This weekend saw the latest contest outing…

 

As predicted, D&G raise Council Tax by 9%

Furthermore, they will “implement increases inselected fees and charges relating…

 

Community Council hears from concerned residents

Number of derelict sites in the town is a major…

 

Huge local reaction to news of proposed goat cull

Social media alight and petition raised following announcement by Oxygen…

 

NFUS retiterates its opposition to National Park in Galloway

NFU Scotland has once again made clear its opposition to…

 

D-day for Council Tax rises across the area

Dumfries and Galloway Council will make decisions today about the…

 

THEY'RE GOING TO CULL THE GOATS!

In what will be a hugely unpopular decision, Oxygen Conservation…

 

Sitka spruce going, going, gone!

A big task for the Tarras Valley team over the…

 

D&G Council Tax set to rise between 5 to 10%

…and the same for Water Rates…possibly 9%. Budgets are to…

 

Caroline Street is still railing against its railings

As angle of fence increases, council budgets for repairs to…

 

U15 gold medal for Langholm’s Aoiffion

Amazing 12 year old athlete makes her mark in her…

 

Service held to celebrate union of parishes

The Church of Scotland presbytery of the South West held…

 

Eskdalemuir's Hub generate Eowyn warmth

But Scottish Power falls short of supporting othervulnerable customers after…

 

Return to the Far Pavilions for Helen

Another Himalayan adventure for gardening columnist Helen Knowles Life is…

 

Copshaw on the the cusp of red and amber for Éowyn

Health Centre provided a Warm Hub throughout the storm By Gilly…

 

Touching tributes to an incredible young man

Both the Langholm Primary and Secondary schools and the Xcel…

 

Langholm’s firefighters are the pride of D & G

Best Dumfries and Galloway Fire Station for 2024/2025 awarded to…

 

Scottish Tories to hold vote on controversial mega-pylon plans

The Scottish Conservatives will this week hold a vote at…

 

Langholm’s ‘model’ citizen hits the highlights in Milan

Proud Langholm Mum, Deborah Laidlaw, set off on a four-flight…

 

Langholm Housing Needs survey – the results are in!

Exceptional response captures the views of 24% of the town’s…

 

Canonbie trust has its eye on Cross Keys Hotel

Potential purchase of historical inn presented to local residents Canonbie…

 
 
Kelso Races
requires mailchimp logins and wired up to a list
Join our mailing list
Keep up to date with all that’s going on at the E&L
This website uses cookies
This site uses cookies to enhance your browsing experience. We use necessary cookies to make sure that our website works. We’d also like to set analytics cookies that help us make improvements by measuring how you use the site. By clicking “Allow All”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyse site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
These cookies are required for basic functionalities such as accessing secure areas of the website, remembering previous actions and facilitating the proper display of the website. Necessary cookies are often exempt from requiring user consent as they do not collect personal data and are crucial for the website to perform its core functions.
A “preferences” cookie is used to remember user preferences and settings on a website. These cookies enhance the user experience by allowing the website to remember choices such as language preferences, font size, layout customization, and other similar settings. Preference cookies are not strictly necessary for the basic functioning of the website but contribute to a more personalised and convenient browsing experience for users.
A “statistics” cookie typically refers to cookies that are used to collect anonymous data about how visitors interact with a website. These cookies help website owners understand how users navigate their site, which pages are most frequently visited, how long users spend on each page, and similar metrics. The data collected by statistics cookies is aggregated and anonymized, meaning it does not contain personally identifiable information (PII).
Marketing cookies are used to track user behaviour across websites, allowing advertisers to deliver targeted advertisements based on the user’s interests and preferences. These cookies collect data such as browsing history and interactions with ads to create user profiles. While essential for effective online advertising, obtaining user consent is crucial to comply with privacy regulations.