British fashion retailer Next will take over the collapsed online furniture seller Made.com brand after it fell into administration, putting around 500 jobs at risk.
Made has been a public company for nearly 18 months, selling sleek furniture online, backed by a large advertising budget. It performed particularly strongly during the COVID-19 pandemic as shoppers stuck at home spent freely on sofas, coffee tables, and lamps.
But the group struggled because of a lack of cash after supply chain disruptions wreaked havoc on its operations before Britain’s economic downturn started to weigh on consumer spending, leaving it holding too much stock.
Made, which currently employs around 500 people, could see its entire workforce slashed, a source familiar with the matter said.
The retailer said on Wednesday that while Next would buy Made.com’s brand, domain names, and intellectual property, the company’s administrators PwC would take control of its remaining assets, including payments made to creditors.
