Ethel Austin call in administrators
THE future of around 60 Teesside workers was in doubt today after clothing retailer Ethel Austin called in administrators for the second time in two years.
The 76-year-old discount retailer said it was “business as usual” today at its six Teesside stores - although the company’s website has already been disabled.
Liverpool-headquartered Ethel Austin, which has nearly 300 stores, and its sister homewares chain Au Naturale, which shares an Ethel Austin outlet in Captain Cook Square, was first rescued from collapse in May, 2008.
Today administrators said they still did not know how much creditors were owed, but a spokesman confirmed that stores in Middlesbrough, Ormesby, Stockton, Hartlepool, Redcar and Billingham would continue to trade, while they attempted to find a buyer.
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers), which represents 700 of more than 3,000 workers affected nationwide, described the news as a “terrible blow”.
George Cain, North-east area organiser for the union, said: “We’ve got to try and stay positive. Some pretty high-profile names have disappeared from the high street but we’re hoping someone will come in and invest in the company. It has prime sites, good stores and good people.”
Ethel Austin was not alone in blaming poor performance on a disastrous New Year sales season.
Today the British Retail Consortium said the high street had suffered its worst January in at least 15 years - and even then the figures were inflated by the increase in VAT.
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