Retailer Joules' cash crunch puts 1,600 jobs at risk

Joules Group will suspend its shares and appoint administrators instead, after financing talks break down with investors including Cornerstone Investment and the retailer Next. The administrators from Interpath Advisory will be appointed to Joules Group and three subsidiaries including the Garden Trading Company. It also suspended trading in its shares.

In its statement to the stock market, Joules said: "The board is taking this action to protect the interests of its creditors". Those creditors are suppliers, landlords and Barclays, its lender. Joules runs about 130 shops, so its cash crunch puts around 1,600 jobs at risk.

Joules was founded in 1989 by Tom Joule who started the firm with "one man, one tent and a lot of enthusiasm". He started out by selling clothes at country shows, but soon soon spotted a demand for colourful clothing amid the standard tweeds worn to such events. Today Joules is best known for its jackets and patterned wellington boots. The Joules Group today which includes the Joules stores as well as the online business, also runs the online-only Garden Trading Company.


The revenue figures reported last week, for the 11 weeks to October 30, fell short of analysts' expectations. The value of its shares fell by more than 95 per cent over the past 12 months to 9.22p on Friday. Additionally, there’s the net debt at the end of October of £25.7m, with a £5m revolving credit facility due to be repaid on 30 November.

Back in 2016, when it had listed its shares on London's junior stock exchange market Aim, Joules Group at the time was valued at £140m. Last Friday, the company’s market value was £10.3m.

Joules blames the tumultuous economic environment of the UK which has swallowed "consumer confidence and disposable income". The squeeze on household budgets post-pandemic and the war-driven inflation has hiked the customer’s cost-of-living, leaving little to nothing for retail spending.

FAQs

Who is Joules owned by?
Tom Joule

Is Joules a high quality brand?
High Quality