Comet To Go Into Administration

Published on: 1 Nov, 2012
Updated on: 4 Nov, 2012

The Comet store at Ladymead.

Comet, the national electrical goods retail chain that has a store at Ladymead, Guildford, has confirmed that it will be put into administration next week.

Comet’s demise would be one of the biggest high street casualties of recent years, probably the biggest since the closure of Woolworths in 2008. The crunch is reported to have come when suppliers said they were no longer prepared to extend credit for stock orders from Comet, demanding instead upfront payments.

There have been rumours about the chain for months and as recently as two weeks ago, it was said that a number of potential bids for the retailer were being considered.

The administrator will run the business as a going concern while it assesses options for sales, closures and liquidation.

A comet spokesperson said that they were unable to say how the Guildford store would be affected nor how many people are employed there.

She said: “Comet Group Limited can confirm that it has today (Thursday 1 November) taken steps to seek the protection of the Court with a view to the Company entering into Administration during week commencing 5^th November 2012. In the meantime, the Board is urgently working with its advisers to seek a solution to secure a viable future for the Company.”

Customers with outstanding orders are being told it is “business as usual until further notice” and that the group intends to fulfil deliveries of products that have been paid for.

Shares of Comet’s rivals rose on news of the planned administration, with Dixons Retail, that owns PC World and Currys, jumping 15% as investors speculated that a major competitor could be removed from the market.

Comet was founded in 1933 as a business charging batteries for wireless sets. It opened its first store in 1968, in Hull, and was bought by Kingfisher in 1984, which expanded the Comet brand into one of the most familiar names on the high street.

Comet’s customer care team is handling customer inquiries on 0844 8009595.