- Interpath Advisory revealed that all but around 70 of the firm’s staff had lost jobs
- Safestyle UK has struggled with a slowdown across the housing market this year
Approximately 680 employees at Safestyle UK have lost their jobs after the business fell into administration.
Interpath Advisory, appointed as administrators for the doors and windows maker, revealed that all but about 70 of the firm’s staff had lost their jobs.
The remaining workers have been kept on board to assist with the group’s ‘orderly wind-down,’ Interpath added.
Redundancies: Approximately 680 employees at Safestyle UK have lost their jobs after the doors and windows maker fell into administration
Safestyle UK operates 42 sales branches and installation depots across Britain and has a manufacturing plant in Wombwell, South Yorkshire.
It has struggled with a slowdown across the UK housing market caused largely by mortgage rate hikes, inflationary pressures and subdued consumer confidence.
Over the summer, trading was further impacted by very wet weather in July, followed by unseasonally warm weather during late August and early September.
Near the beginning of this month, the Bradford-based company warned that it could violate its debt covenant should losses be worse than anticipated.
Interpath was recruited to explore strategic options, yet last week, Safestyle said it was not expecting to receive a refinancing or capital injection and that shareholders were unlikely to earn any money from a sale.
As a result, Safestyle UK shares, which had already fallen about 99 per cent since the beginning of the year, had their trading on the AIM market suspended on Friday.
That same day, its subsidiary HPAS and holding companies Style Group Holdings and Style Group UK realised they could not keep trading, so Safestyle called in the administrators.
Rick Harrison, managing director at Interpath Advisory, remarked: ‘These are really challenging times for companies across the home improvement market.
‘After seeing strong sales during the Covid lockdown periods, many companies are seeing trading being impacted by the cost of living crisis and soaring costs.
‘Unfortunately for Safestyle, and despite the tireless efforts of the management team over recent months, these challenges have proven too difficult to overcome.’
Lee Parkinson, an organiser at GMB union, said: ‘Safestyle UK workers have been completely let down by mismanagement from the very top of the business.
‘More than 600 workers have been cruelly cut off from work, weeks before Christmas, with no guarantee that they will even get last week’s paycheck.
‘The impact of this closure upon the community of Barnsley cannot be overstated. It is simply devastating. We need urgent answers on where the money has gone.’
