The fashion brands David Lawrence and Marcs have been placed in voluntary administration.
Administrator Rodgers Reidy’s director, Geoffrey Reidy, said the two brands would continue to trade while his team reviewed their operations before a planned sale of the businesses.
The sole director of the companies operating the labels, Malcolm Webster, says it has been necessary to appoint administrators because of deteriorating sales, market conditions and poor cash flow.
The brands operate from 52 standalone stores, 11 outlets and 140 concession stores in Australia and New Zealand.
Ten of those stores and 42 staff are in New Zealand, while 1,130 staff, including 260 full-time workers, are employed in Australia. They will all remain open while Reidy tries to find a buyer. “It’s business as usual,” a spokesman for the administrator told AAP on Thursday.
The fashion brands have told the administrator all employee wages were paid until 30 January 2017.
Staff will hear more about their futures from their managers, while customer gift cards and returns will be honoured as normal, the administrator said. Staff were told late on Wednesday the companies behind the brands had been placed in voluntary administration and a hunt for a buyer was…
