Paul Dounis and Ken Pattullo of Begbies Traynor have been named joint administrators of two Scottish shopping centres, both in Ayr.
The Kyle Shopping Centre in Ayr and the nearby Arran Mall, are owned by Glasgow-based Cairnduff Developments Ayr Ltd. Located in the heart of the town with direct access from the High Street, the Kyle Centre features 27 shop units, comprising 95,00sq ft of retail space, and a newly redeveloped food court. The nearby Arran Mall features 22 units providing 42,000sq ft of retail space.
The administrators say there are no job losses at present and the shopping centres will continue to trade as normal while they consider a number of different strategies to improve customer footfall before seeking a buyer for the business.
Paul Dounis, Begbies Traynor partner and joint administrator, said: 'Like many regional towns, headline rental values for retail units have fallen dramatically over the last few years. Unfortunately, these shopping centres have suffered from the fall in consumer spending combined with increased competition from other retail venues. However, we believe that with their excellent town centre location, both have appeal for local shoppers. We will continue to trade the centres while we explore the options for improving visitor numbers, this includes potentially reconfiguring the Kyle Centre to make it more attractive to shoppers and embarking on discussions with other large space retailers.'
In a separate administration involving York-based premium fashion retailer Coggles Ltd, Andy Clay and David Acland of Begbies Traynor have sold certain of Coggles assets, including stock and all intellectual property, to the Hut Group, one of the UK's leading multi-website online retailers.
Andy Clay, Begbies Traynor partner and joint administrator, said: 'Our primary duty is to bring about the optimum return for creditors and the offer from The Hut Group was an extremely good deal. Unfortunately, most of the interest we received was from potential purchasers wanting to acquire the online side of Coggles' business which represented the bulk of turnover, rather than for its retail outlets. This means that the stores in York have closed and the remaining staff have been made redundant. While it is sad to see Coggles disappearing from the high street for the time being, and the loss of employment for the remaining staff, it is positive that the business will continue as part of a large and successful specialist online retail group.'
