Bonmarche collapses again as retail bloodbath deepens

Administrators are trying to strike a rescue deal and said no redundancies would be made or stores closed in the meantime. 

Bonmarché has 225 stores around the UK, having closed 30 when it first went into administration in October 2019 as it battled rising costs and the threat from online shopping. 

It was rescued at the time by rival Peacocks – part of retail tycoon Philip Day’s Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group. 

Peacocks and several other EWM Group brands went into administration last month. 

Based in Wakefield, Bonmarché traces its roots back to 1982. Founder Parkash Singh Chima started selling clothes door-to-door and in markets, before opening his first shop in Doncaster in 1985. 

Damian Webb, of administrators RSM, said: “Bonmarche remains an attractive brand with a loyal customer base. It is our intention to continue to trade while working closely with management to explore the options for the business.

“We will shortly be marketing the business for sale, and based on the interest to date we anticipate there will be a number of interested parties.”