McColl’s warns of imminent administration

McColl’s Retail Group could enter administration imminently after failing to secure fresh financing. The convenience store chain, which owns 1,200 managed shops, has been locked in rescue talks with its banks and Morrisons, its wholesale supplier, with which it also has a partnership for 200 Morrisons Daily stores. The company said it remained in discussions over a refinancing to resolve immediate funding issues and to secure enough cash to continue operating in the longer term. “However, while no decision has yet been made, McColl’s confirms that unless an alternative solution can be agreed in the short term, it is increasingly likely that the group would be placed into administration with the objective of achieving a sale of the group to a third-party purchaser and securing the interests of creditors and employees,” the company said in a statement. McColl’s was valued at £200m when it was floated in 2014, but this figure has since declined to £3.2m. It has been trying to transform itself from a declining newsagent business into a higher-margin convenience chain. The Times (£) The FT (£) The Guardian