Joy bought out of administration by owners via pre-pack deal

Lifestyle retailer Joy has been bought out of administration by its owners, saving 230 jobs, but resulting in the closure of 11 stores across the UK.

London-based Louche London Limited, the parent company of high street retailer Joy, was placed into administration earlier this week. Increasing high-street rents and the prospect of higher business rates were attributed as the main reasons for the company’s insolvency by its management.

Gareth Roberts and Paul Ellison from KRE Corporate Recovery were appointed as joint administrators of the fashion and lifestyle company and oversaw the sale of the business, which sold back immediately to its owners Louche London Limited and the Joy Group of Companies under a pre-pack deal.

The pre-pack deal saw owners save 21 stores and 230, but resulted in the closure of 11 stores and loss of 78 jobs according to Drapersonline. "With the majority of the retail stores remaining open and with many jobs saved this is an excellent demonstration of why pre-packaged sales from Administration will continue to have a place in rescuing businesses," said KRE partner Paul Ellison in a statement.

This is not the first time that Joy collapsed into administration. In September 2008, Louche London Limited, a company founded by one of the original co-founders of Joy Maureen Chadha, acquired 12 Joy stores out of administration.