Hughes & Hughes bookseller goes into receivership
Nationwide bookselling chain Hughes & Hughes has gone into receivership today.
"It is with great regret and disappointment that the directors and management of Hughes & Hughes have invited Ulster Bank Ireland Limited to appoint David Carson of Deloitte as receiver to the company," said a statement from the company.
The firm blamed declining consumer demand, the sterling exchange rate, competition from internet retailers and inflexible rents for the collapse.
"In common with all retailers, Hughes & Hughes have been operating in an environment of collapsing consumer demand due to the weakness of the economy and the exchange rate differential with sterling," sais the statement.
"Bookshops also have the added factor of the revolutionary wave of internet competition to deal with.
"Further, by virtue of the majority proportion of Hughes & Hughes business being generated through our airport concessions the business has been particularly badly hit by the collapse in passenger numbers passing through Dublin & Cork airports.
"The difficulty of being unable to sufficiently renegotiate occupation costs either on the High Street or in the airports is also common to many Irish businesses at present, particularly in the retail sector.
"Indeed the unwillingness to reduce rents has been in stark contrast to the approach of our employees who were willing to make the adjustments necessary to support the business."
