Collapsed retailer Booktopia terminates 165 staff, only 18 workers left

Things have gone from bad to worse at the collapsed business after 165 staff were let go, just weeks after 50 had already got the chop.

Things have gone from bad to worse at collapsed online book seller Booktopia after 165 staff were let go while customers can no longer make any orders.

Last week, the ASX-listed retailer went into voluntary administration, after it had been teetering on the brink of collapse for weeks following a trading halt on the Australian stock market.

Australia’s largest bookseller had been haemorrhaging money – recording a $16.7 million loss for the six months to December 31 – while it had also recently laid off 50 staff and its former CEO resigned after spending less than a year in the role.

Now the administrators who have taken over Booktopia – Keith Crawford, Matthew Caddy and Damien Pasfield from restructuring firm McGrathNicol – have been “urgently” looking into the business.

They have reportedly terminated 165 staff, with just 18 people remaining working at the defunct company.

The decision was made after less than a week of administrators being in control of the business, after looking at its finances and concluding it would be uneconomical to keep those workers employed.

The error message that comes up on the site.

Avid book readers aren’t able to shop through the website either, with an error message of “Payment Gateway Under Maintenance, Try again later” coming up if attempted.

One of the administrators, Mr Crawford, said in a statement to news.com.au “Our immediate focus is to undertake an assessment of Booktopia’s assets and work alongside employees, suppliers, and customers to secure the best outcome for all parties.”

The administrators confirmed that a mass redundancy had taken place.

They have also been seeking to restructure or sell the business, and have apparently received 60 expressions of interest.

The first meeting of creditors is taking place next Monday, on July 15.

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Booktopia was popular during the coronavirus lockdowns but it has now gone under. Picture: Australia Post.

In February, Booktopia launched a strategic review to turn its fortunes around, after its revenue dropped by 21 per cent.

Then last month, Booktopia requested to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) that it pause trading because it had a “pending” update to shareholders.

That update was the eventual announcement that the business had plunged into external administration.

Since launching on the ASX in 2020, Booktopia has peaked from a share price high of $3, plummeting to a low of 4 cents by the time it went bust.

In June, the embattled ecommerce business cut 50 roles from its Sydney head office in the northwestern suburb of Ryde.

That followed from the 40 people Booktopia made redundant in January last year.

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Originally published as Collapsed retailer Booktopia terminates 165 staff, only 18 workers left