Made.com to sell off existing furniture stock to recover funds for out of pocket shoppers
Made.com is to sell off remaining sofas and tables, in a bid to recover funds for creditors, administrators for the collapsed furniture firm said.
Auction house John Pye & Sons has been appointed by administrators of the business, which was hammered by consumers pulling back on homeware purchases.
Administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said it had appointed the auctioneers for Made.com, just a week after they were appointed for the firm, which said it could no longer keep its head above water.
All UK stock from Made.com will be included in the inventory, comprising of several thousands of upholstery, home furniture, outdoor and leisure, home accessories and lighting items.
John Pye’s customer base was “familiar” with buying the type of stock on offer, the auction house’s managing director, Adam Pye, said.
The house was hopeful of being able to realise a positive return for creditors and said furniture buyers would be able to bypass sector-wide protracted waiting times for delivery.
Made.com’s brand, domain names and intellectual property was poached by high street stalwart Next for £3.4m in a prepack administration.
Although around 12,000 UK orders are outstanding, customers will not be able to get a refund from the company directly, but will need to try their bank provider.
The furniture firm’s boss Nicola Thompson, who took over the top spot this year, apologised to those impacted by the company going into administration, stating that the firm had “fought tooth and nail” to avoid this outcome.
The world of stable demand for goods and reliable supply chains had “vanished” and Made.com “could not pivot fast enough” after consumer sentiment was hammered by surging costs, Thompson said.
Made posted a loss before tax of £35.3m for the six months to 30 June, versus £10.1m a year prior, with consumers turning away from big-ticket items as the cost of living crunch set in.