Comet sold @ BIN - 2 quid

[Pred]

http://news.sky.com/home/business/article/16106541

 

[retired_member32]

The buyer is a group of companies under the name Hailey Holdings Ltd, advised by retail turnaround firm, OpCapita LLP

it will now be known has hailey's comet

 

[dta]

they shouldn't have sent to d/l - would have got a higher price

 

[Paullas]

they shouldn't have sent to d/l - would have got a higher price

I don't remember seeing that in the bagrain basement here?

 

[Pred]

they think they got a bargain at 2 quid but they forgot there is the nominet transfer to pay on comet.co.uk lol

 

[Edwin]

A different report said that the new buyers were committed to operating Comet "for at least 18 months" which sounds rather like buyout speak for "bankruptcy in 18 months and a day if it doesn't turn a profit."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/nov/09/comet-sold-for-2-pounds-kesa

 

[accelerator]

It's tough out there. It's not that surprising to see a company like Comet having difficulty in the current climate. After all, it's been a massive reversal in conditions, plus most people have a flat screen TV now.

 

[BREWSTERS]

Too many eggs in one basket - they must've been raking it in upto 3 years ago...time to diversify.

 

[retired_member32]

A different report said that the new buyers were committed to operating Comet "for at least 18 months" which sounds rather like buyout speak for "bankruptcy in 18 months and a day if it doesn't turn a profit."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/nov/09/comet-sold-for-2-pounds-kesa

correct ? this probably includes all stock inc. warehoused stock ,so they buy the business for £2 ask the creditors for a huge markdown of goods held and the permission of the creditors , a nice backhander from the government for keeping people in work (temporary) and run it into the ground for a nice return ,whats the story ?

it goes on every single day

 

[cc976a]

Stores like this are really going to struggle due to economic climate and of course fierce competitive pricing on the net....BestBuy victims of this too in a similar industry.

I took one look in a BestBuy a few months ago and saw high prices - higher than supermarkets and online retailers - surprised they lasted as long as they did. They weren't established long enough in the UK to have any brand commitment with consumers, and not competitive on price. No brained really.

 

[tifosi]

It'll go the same way as Woolworths IMO. As mentioned there's a financial commitment for existing employees pension plans and to keep shops open in the immetiate future. But beyond that already a number of store are set for closure with more in the future - 'right-sizing' they call it.

Not a massive surprise really. Comet specialise in electricals & white-goods which are now much better priced online. It's one of the biggest high-street -> online sector transfers.

 

[Blossom]

I took one look in a BestBuy a few months ago and saw high prices - higher than supermarkets and online retailers - surprised they lasted as long as they did. They weren't established long enough in the UK to have any brand commitment with consumers, and not competitive on price. No brained really.

Interesting - this article said they had cut prices and that's one of the reasons why it failed: http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/8232-best-buy-closes-its-uk-stores

I thought they were ok prices for a physical store, although it's always annoying when the prices online are so much cheaper than in the shop (and no reserve and collect for many things). I think they rolled out too many stores too fast, and of course they picked a bad time. Much friendlier than PC World, Currys etc. though.

 

[Edwin]

Plus Best Buy had almost no choice of products (even less in many ranges than PC World or Currys)

I try and steer clear of "in Tokyo..." stories as far as possible, because I know that the UK is very "different" but there's a fabulous chain of stores there called "Yodobashi Camera" (actually sells all manner of electrical products, not just cameras). One of the core differentiators is that they have pretty much EVERY current product, so if you go looking for a notebook PC you're faced with all the current models from every major manufacturer. Plus they put the "Product release date" on every single summary sticker, below every product, so that you know if you're looking at older stuff or the very latest gadget (also makes it a breeze to compare two products, since the summary sticker - composed in store - lets you play a kind of "Top Trumps" with the main features of similar products). Oh, and they're not afraid to have the same product on show several times, so that for example they can group cameras by "Good for beginners", "Good for Night Photography", "Ultra Portable", etc. etc. rather than just by make. I really could go on and on, but I won't - suffice to say it's a chalk-and-cheese experience compared to shopping at ANY high street electronics retailer in the UK and it's astonishing that, for the price of a ticket, a hotel room and an interpreter for a few days, none of the major UK retailers have bothered to go over and learn what works from them.

 

[retired_member32]

most companies run 2/3 companies on the companies house register and leave them in dorment status,run them into the ground and pass there assets onto the next company ,i chased a premium singular finance domain which was under an IP who just allowed the old director to purchase the domain for £2 which came under "internet misc." ,ahh the beauty of online accounts via the companies house register ,but if the regulator asks remember it doesnt go on

 

[scooter]

http://news.sky.com/home/business/article/16106541

There was a link on the sky page that took me to the below.
Very interesting and makes a lot of real sense.


http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Aftershock-book-predicts-economic/2011/07/25/id/404782

Watch the video. (apart from the book hype, I can see all he predicts coming very true.) Grim, grim times ahead. :-(





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