Australia's PAS group goes into voluntary administration

01 Jun '20

2 min read

Pic: PAS group

Australia’s PAS Group, which owns high-street clothing brands Review, Black Pepper and Yarra Trail, recently entered voluntary administration. The company employs 1,300 people and operates 225 shops in Australia and New Zealand. The decision by the group, which has struggled for years, follows a recent announcement that it was looking at restructuring options.

The PAS Group board has appointed PwC partners Stephen Longley, David McEvoy and Martin Ford as voluntary administrators.

It was a tough time for Australian retailers even before the pandemic hit in March, with several household names, including homewares chain Ishka, Harris Scarfe, Jeanswest, Bardot, Bose, EB Games and Dimmeys, collapsing in late 2019 and early 2020.

The company board believed the group was solvent but administration was the best way to make changes, “given the issues as a result of unfavourable financial market conditions for retailers, the COVID-19 crisis, and the challenges of restructuring in that environment,” PAS Group chief executive Eric Morris was quoted as saying by Australian media reports.

PAS Group stores will continue to trade as normal, in-line with local coronavirus local restrictions in Australia and New Zealand. Store credits and vouchers will be honoured.

For the half-year to December 31, the PAS Group reported a $1.2 million loss on revenue of $129.9 million and said it closed the half debt-free with $4.8 million cash on hand.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

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