Two Worthing town centre stores could be set to close

The national media has widely reported that Edinburgh Woollen Mill, which owns Peacocks and Jaeger, faced collapse, with 24,000 jobs at risk.

There is a Peacocks store in Chapel Road, Worthing and an Edinburgh Woollen Mill store in South Street Square, Worthing.

According to national media reports, staff were written to on September 9 by the company to provide an update on the situation.

Insolvency experts FRP have been brought in to try to secure the company’s future.

In a statement released last week, EWM chief executive Steve Simpson said: “Like every retailer, we have found the past seven months extremely difficult.

“This situation has grown worse in recent weeks as we have had to deal with a series of false rumours about our payments and trading which have impacted our credit insurance.

“Traditionally, EWM has always traded with strong cash reserves and a conservative balance sheet, but these stories, the reduction in credit insurance, against the backdrop of the lockdown and now this second wave of Covid-19, and all the local lockdowns, have made normal trading impossible.

“As directors we have a duty to the business, our staff, our customers and our creditors to find the very best solution in this brutal environment.

“So we have applied to court today for a short breathing space to assess our options before moving to appoint administrators.

“Through this process I hope and believe we will be able to secure the best future for our businesses, but there will inevitably be significant cuts and closures as we work our way through this.

“I would like to thank all our staff for their amazing efforts during this time and also our customers who have remained so loyal and committed to our brands.”