Womenswear retailer Bardot to close all nine of its stores
Dozens of staff are out of work and items heavily discounted as another major retailer announces it will close several Queensland stores.
QLD Business
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WOMENSWEAR retailer Bardot will close all nine of its Queensland stores within weeks as company administrators restructure the embattled fashion chain and look for a buyer.
Dozens of staff in the company’s nine Queensland locations will be out of work, with KMPG Australia slashing the number of stores operated by the Melbourne-based business.
Bardot’s Cairns, Chermside, Indooroopilly, Kawana, North Lakes, Pacific Fair, Sunshine Plaza, Toowoomba and Townsville stores are among 58 across Australia to close before March.
The ladies retailer will only operate in Victoria and New South Wales.
According to the company’s website Queensland stores will hold a closing down sale, with up to 80 per cent off products.
Bardot was put into voluntary administration in late November, becoming the latest victim of weak consumer spending, the rise of online shopping, relentless discounting and an influx of global fast fashion giants.
KPMG Australia restructuring services partner Brendan Richards said the store closures were unfortunate but necessary.
He said KPMG was looking to secure a buyer to inject new funds into the fashion chain.
“While closing stores is a very difficult decision to make, our analysis has determined it is a necessary step in rebuilding the financial performance of the business and maximising the prospects of a successful sale or restructure,” Mr Richards said.
The retailer, which opened its first store on Bridge Rd in Richmond in 1996, had 72 stores across Australia and employed 800 staff before its collapse.
Its closure is the latest in a string of bad news for retail, with Harris Scarfe this week also revealing six of its eight Queensland stores would close.
Stores in Cairns, Hervey Bay, Mackay, Morayfield, Rockhampton and Townsville are among the 21 across Australia slated to close.
A string of retailers have collapsed or been forced into major restructures during the past three years, including discount retailer Dimmeys, menswear chains Roger David, Ed Harris and Rhodes & Beckett, and footwear groups Shoes of Prey and Payless Shoes.
In December dozens of businesses were placed into liquidation.
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