LONDON: British cafe chain Patisserie Valerie announced on Tuesday that it had fallen into administration, threatening the jobs of almost 3,000 staff at its nearly 200 locations.
“Patisserie Holdings plc announces today that…it has been unable to renew its bank facilities, and therefore regrettably the business does not have sufficient
funding to meet its liabilities as they fall due,” it said in a statement to the London Stock Exchange.
The company blamed “significant fraud” claims that emerged in October, when a £40-million ($52-million, 45-million-euro) hole was found in its finances, with accounting irregularities blamed.
The business admitted last week that its finances were in even more dire straits, with accountants uncovering “thousands of false
entries into the company’s ledgers”.
Chairman Luke Johnson has extended a loan using his own cash to ensure staff receive their January wages.
The first Patisserie Valerie opened in London’s Soho in 1926, undergoing a massive expansion since 2006, growing from eight shops to 192 as of May 2017.
The firm said talks with lenders HSBC and Barclays to stave off its debts had broken down, leaving it with no option but to appoint KPMG as administrator.- AFP
