2020 Retailers in trouble thread

[sleepezy]

Brooking10 said:

Despite its apparent incongruity in the UK market it is a huge global success and has become a $1bn dollar plus business in a remarkably short period of time. Unit by unit exposure is increasingly towards franchisees rather than than the corporate mothership. It may well retrench / slow down expansion in the UK but it isn’t going pop. Will be interesting to see the effect Wendy’s has if its mooted UK return to the UK comes to pass.

If (and I say this as a complete non-fast food expert as we only have McD's once a year as a family tradition on New Years Day on the journey back home) the US version of 5Gs from about 4 years ago is anything to go by then I can understand this - we had a 5Gs on a trip of NY to Cape Cod at a roadstop / retail mart and it was (1) not much more $ than McD and (2) much nicer.

I've had one 5Gs in the UK and was shocked by the high cost and rubbish quality.

[anonymous-user]

1000 units in the US !!

[anonymous-user]

jakesmith said:

SydneyBridge said:

lampchair said:

Not looking too bright for your local highstreet vultures BrightHouse.

Shame.

BrightHouse falls to £16m loss in latest quarter

Good. The high street does not need companies like that

Where do poor people with poor credit go to buy a telly then?

Through your back door when you’re out eating overpriced crap food!

[kiethton]

Found the new thread...

My thoughts for the year:

More HoF stores to close when MA realises the business isn’t profitable
GBK looks weak, as do some other mid-market restaurants eg Prezzo

Not a retailer but Intu, the shopping centre owner, is either going to need a huge rights issue, a debt for equity swap, or will be going bust...

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

kiethton said:

Not a retailer but Intu, the shopping centre owner, is either going to need a huge rights issue, a debt for equity swap, or will be going bust...

They are spending squillions in Nottingham at the moment. (in both cash outlay & reduced income from the empty stores during the renovation)

[anonymous-user]

kiethton said:

Found the new thread...

My thoughts for the year:

More HoF stores to close when MA realises the business isn’t profitable
GBK looks weak, as do some other mid-market restaurants eg Prezzo

Not a retailer but Intu, the shopping centre owner, is either going to need a huge rights issue, a debt for equity swap, or will be going bust...

HOF and Debs are intertwined

HOF will be the ultimate winner but with a far smaller estate focussing on the very best units and locations. Some former Debs sites will become HOF. HOF will exit all the provincial sites in favour of major cities and destination malls.

Mid-market casual dining has more trouble ahead of it and both of those you mention are taking steps. TRG is the biggest name to watch.

Both Intu and Hammerson are hard at work of balance sheet restructuring. DfE not out of the question as being landlords is far less onerous for financial stakeholders than running most other businesses.

[kiethton]

Brooking10 said:

HOF and Debs are intertwined

HOF will be the ultimate winner but with a far smaller estate focussing on the very best units and locations. Some former Debs sites will become HOF. HOF will exit all the provincial sites in favour of major cities and destination malls.

Mid-market casual dining has more trouble ahead of it and both of those you mention are taking steps. TRG is the biggest name to watch.

Totally agree on the HOF/Debs thing

I actually think, for 2020, that TRG will be ok given their purchase of Waga, from 2022ish however...

[jakesmith]

Gecko1978 said:

Comstock said:

jakesmith said:

Where do poor people with poor credit go to buy a telly then?

Second hand or scrape together a £130 to buy a Bush 32 incher from Argos.

Avoid the Bright House sharks at all costs.

( and I say that as a poor person with poor credit myself)

Basically this - whebn I left uni WIde Screen TV's had just become affordable (no flat screens then out side of harrods etc) Safeway (now morrisons) had some £195 limited stock were by far cheapest on the market - that is what we got paid in cash had to go aat mid night to pick it up.

If it was more we could not have afforded it an we were not going to get credit for a TV

So save up an buy it when you can

I can see why you think this but the customers love BH. It’s like a club. They go in once a week to pay their dues for whatever they have, they’re all on first names terms with the store workers, the store managers are more like bouncers with tattooes all over their faces. They have a bit of banter, pay their £17, maybe sign up for something extra too whilst they’re in there.

All good and well saying ‘they should buy a Bush one for £70 from Argos’ you might as well say ‘crack should not be available’.

If it’s legal and controlled it’s better than doorstep lending, loan sharks etc. Their apr is high but not 3 digets, over 5 years. There’s worse out there

You could say all the fast food restaurants aren’t ethical, but the legislature and market decides what goes

That being said their financial statement is not ideal so maybe the market has spoken! They were forced by FSA to lower their APR rates so that must be a factor.

[loafer123]

kiethton said:

Not a retailer but Intu, the shopping centre owner, is either going to need a huge rights issue, a debt for equity swap, or will be going bust...

The latter.

[anonymous-user]

loafer123 said:

The latter.

If it goes bust it will be as part of a process that affords control to certain stakeholders as opposed to dwindling into oblivion.

[anonymous-user]

jakesmith said:

Gecko1978 said:

Comstock said:

jakesmith said:

Where do poor people with poor credit go to buy a telly then?

Second hand or scrape together a £130 to buy a Bush 32 incher from Argos.

Avoid the Bright House sharks at all costs.

( and I say that as a poor person with poor credit myself)

Basically this - whebn I left uni WIde Screen TV's had just become affordable (no flat screens then out side of harrods etc) Safeway (now morrisons) had some £195 limited stock were by far cheapest on the market - that is what we got paid in cash had to go aat mid night to pick it up.

If it was more we could not have afforded it an we were not going to get credit for a TV

So save up an buy it when you can

I can see why you think this but the customers love BH. It’s like a club. They go in once a week to pay their dues for whatever they have, they’re all on first names terms with the store workers, the store managers are more like bouncers with tattooes all over their faces. They have a bit of banter, pay their £17, maybe sign up for something extra too whilst they’re in there.

All good and well saying ‘they should buy a Bush one for £70 from Argos’ you might as well say ‘crack should not be available’.

If it’s legal and controlled it’s better than doorstep lending, loan sharks etc. Their apr is high but not 3 digets, over 5 years. There’s worse out there
.

Nobody should use a loan shark, but it might actually be cheaper for some people to borrow £150 from a *licenced* doorstep lender and buy a Bush telly and a Roku rather than sign up with Bright House.

Obviously an interest free loan from a friend or relative would be better still.

When you're skint, and most people are in January, a bit of Freeview telly or a 50p DVD from CEX can be a godsend. I'd just urge people to think hard and do the maths about how to do it cheaply as possible.

Anyway, getting off topic...

[anonymous-user]

kiethton said:

Totally agree on the HOF/Debs thing

I actually think, for 2020, that TRG will be ok given their purchase of Waga, from 2022ish however...

I think the problem with TRG is the dross legacy stuff. There are a good number of unit closures to come in 2020 I suspect. Totally agree re the long term financial prognosis. The head scratcher for me is that I can’t see huge synergy benefits between Wags and the legacy offerings and so it remains a business within a business albeit a well performing one. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Wags under different control/standalone again within 3-5 years.

[Tango13]

techiedave said:

List of Debenhams store closures
The Guardian reports that the following locations are set to close later this month.
Altrincham, Greater Manchester – January 11
Birmingham The Fort – January 11
Kirkcaldy, Fife – January 11
Walton-on-Thames, Surrey – January 11
Wandsworth, London – January 11
Wolverhampton – January 11
Chatham, Kent – January 15
Great Yarmouth, Norfolk – January 15
Slough, Berkshire – January 15
Stockton-on-Tees, Co Durham – January 15
Welwyn, Herfordshire – January 15
Witney, Oxfordshire – January 15
Ashford, Kent – January 19
Canterbury, Kent – January 19
Eastbourne, East Sussex – January 19
Folkestone, Kent – January 19
Southport, Merseyside – January 19
Southsea, Portsmouth – January 19
Wimbledon, London – January 19

The one in Welwyn Garden City doesn't surprise me at all, less than a minutes walk from either a John Lewis or a Marks & Spencer

[tumble dryer]

Brooking10 said:

loafer123 said:

The latter.

If it goes bust it will be as part of a process that affords control to certain stakeholders as opposed to dwindling into oblivion.

[loafer123]

Brooking10 said:

loafer123 said:

The latter.

If it goes bust it will be as part of a process that affords control to certain stakeholders as opposed to dwindling into oblivion.

It’s already owned by the lenders, they just haven’t realised it yet.

[anonymous-user]

loafer123 said:

It’s already owned by the lenders, they just haven’t realised it yet.

You think ?

[kiethton]

Brooking10 said:

kiethton said:

Totally agree on the HOF/Debs thing

I actually think, for 2020, that TRG will be ok given their purchase of Waga, from 2022ish however...

I think the problem with TRG is the dross legacy stuff. There are a good number of unit closures to come in 2020 I suspect. Totally agree re the long term financial prognosis. The head scratcher for me is that I can’t see huge synergy benefits between Wags and the legacy offerings and so it remains a business within a business albeit a well performing one. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Wags under different control/standalone again within 3-5 years.

That purchase was do or die for them, hence why they overpaid so much. F&B’s/Chiquito are both dead and will see a managed wind-down IMO

[hyphen]

Tango13 said:

techiedave said:

List of Debenhams store closures
The Guardian reports that the following locations are set to close later this month.
Altrincham, Greater Manchester – January 11
Birmingham The Fort – January 11
Kirkcaldy, Fife – January 11
Walton-on-Thames, Surrey – January 11
Wandsworth, London – January 11
Wolverhampton – January 11
Chatham, Kent – January 15
Great Yarmouth, Norfolk – January 15
Slough, Berkshire – January 15
Stockton-on-Tees, Co Durham – January 15
Welwyn, Herfordshire – January 15
Witney, Oxfordshire – January 15
Ashford, Kent – January 19
Canterbury, Kent – January 19
Eastbourne, East Sussex – January 19
Folkestone, Kent – January 19
Southport, Merseyside – January 19
Southsea, Portsmouth – January 19
Wimbledon, London – January 19

The one in Welwyn Garden City doesn't surprise me at all, less than a minutes walk from either a John Lewis or a Marks & Spencer

Will anyone want to lease a space as large as a department store? Wonder how long they will stay empty.

[vaud]

hyphen said:

Will anyone want to lease a space as large as a department store? Wonder how long they will stay empty.

Repurposed into flats? They did that with office space on Bessemer Rd...

[sleepezy]

Brooking10 said:

1000 units in the US !!

1362 apparently, I'm surprised it isn't more