Wednesday 26 November 2008

Goodbye Woolies


If you were to look very carefully at the back of my shaven head you would see two scars. One of this happened when I was three as I slid down the step outside Woolworths in Bangor as my grandfather was looking after me and my baby (at the time) brother.

Well today Woolworths and MFI (upon how desks and surrounded by whose bookcases I prepared for the 2005 General Election) have both gone into administration. There was talk earlier in the day that the Government would wade in to bail out Woolworths but like an unlucky cricketer the edifice of the UK's High Street has lost its wicket one shy of its century. Now Woolworths 30,000 employees and 20,000 people covered by its pension fund, ,which has a £100m deficit face uncertainty.

Meanwhile MFI who had enjoyed a rent holiday in an attempt to stave off administration have been unable to turn things around and over another 1000 retail employees face redundancy. However, 261 employees were laid off with immediate effect by Galiform, the joinery firm who previously owned the company but are now one of the landlords.

2 comments:

  1. It's not goodbye yet, as administration isn't quite the death knell, but it doesn't look good.

    Anyway, was it not Wellworths, the similar chain, in both name and market, in Bangor?

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  2. It was both about 2 doors up from one another both just across the road from Trinity where the League of Church loyalty pick and mix was purchased from Woolies (at least it was in my tenure as secretary).

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