Administration for a second furniture retailer
23/01/2009
For the second time this month, a UK furniture retail chain has gone into administration.
Sofa Workshop, which specialises in hand-made sofas, was founded in Kent in 1985, and now has 30 stores across the UK employing 170 people, has followed rival retailer Land of Leather into administration.
It turned over around £30 million last year, but has suffered a fall in orders and cash-flow problems because of a flat housing market.
Neil Bennett of administrators Leonard Curtis has said his company has already received offers for Sofa Workshop and was confident of being able to sell the furniture operation as a going concern in the course of the next few days.
He told The Times: “The original business model for Sofa Workshop was excellent. The product range is tightly focused with a mix of classic and modern styles which can readily be altered to suit individual customers’ requirements, while the stores have been carefully positioned to take the best advantage of that particular market.
“This is a good business, with an excellent reputation in a niche market. We have received several expressions of serious interest including an offer currently being evaluated. We are very hopeful of being able to conclude a sale in the next few days that will protect as many jobs as possible and of course fulfil all outstanding customer orders.”
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