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Company Voluntary Arrangements are coming at a rate of about two a week at the moment, as Ann Summers became the eighth retail or restaurant business to threaten or formally launch a CVA in less than five weeks.
The company, which has around 140 stores in the UK, has told landlords it wants to switch to turnover rents to mitigate the impact of reduced sales from its brick-and-mortar outlets. It has said that if landlords don’t agree, it will launch a CVA to force through the changes.
Since the beginning of August, New Look, Wasabi, Itsu, Pizza Express, Select, River Island and Pizza Hut have all either begun the CVA process, or told landlords they might launch a CVA if they don’t agree to restructure rents.
The BPF has said CVAs proposed by Select and New Look do not meet the standards set out in its code of practice.
Ann Summers has actually seen sales increase during lockdown, but the boost has come online at the expense of physical stores.
“I’m grateful to those landlords who have engaged in constructive discussions with us and should we carry out a CVA they will definitely not be compromised,” chief executive Jacqueline Gold wrote in Retail Week.
“To those who haven’t yet, there is still time to come to the table. It is a shame we have to threaten a CVA in order to do this, but this is no idle threat.”
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