Mothercare U.K. Enters AdministrationMothercare U.K. Enters Administration

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the legal firm charged with bringing the Mothercare U.K. brand into administration, has announced that the 79 retail stores in the U.K. and 1,010 overseas franchise stores will close.

With franchises overseas still seeing profit, the fall of U.K. sales placed increasing pressure on the retailer and, despite restructuring in 2018, still faced “difficult market conditions, reduced consumer spending and a fundamental change in high street retail,” according to PwC’s latest release.

“This is a sad moment for a well-known high street name. No-one is immune from the challenging conditions faced by the U.K. retail sector,” says Zelf Hussain, joint administrator, partner, PwC. “Like many other retailers, Mothercare has been hit hard by increasing cost pressures and changes in consumer spending. It’s with real regret that we have to implement a phased closure of all U.K. stores. Our focus will be to help employees and keep the stores trading for as long as possible.” 

Mothercare U.K. is marketed for sale and will be wound down in the coming months with closing down sales. International franchises are also said to be operating as normal at this time.