Court appoints administrators to struggling Irish retailer Pamela Scott

New York – The Irish fashion retailer Pamela Scott will be closing near half of its stores across Ireland. On Thursday, the High Court appointed temporary administrators to the two related companies that operate the namesake brand’s 13 fashion retail stores.

Pamela Scott’s pre-existing financial struggles have been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the judge’s resolution, Arzac Developments, which operates 10 of the Pamela Scott stores, and Richard Alan, which has three stores, are now insolvent and cannot continue to trade. Both are owned by Flairline Fashion and employ 104 people.

The court appointed Eamonn Richardson and Ian Barrett of KPMG as joint provisional liquidators to Richard Alan & Co and Arzac Developments.

In a statement, Pamela Scott said that the restructuring would help secure 90 jobs, and its online operations would be unaffected. It said gift vouchers, credit notes, loyalty cards, and deposits will not be affected by the closures.

The company’s managing director, Richard Barron, said in a statement that it was “devastating” to have to close shops and lay off staff but these were “extraordinary times that required extraordinary measures.”