Hotter CVA plan submitted, to complete next year

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Jul 10, 2020

Hotter Shoes has submitted its company voluntary arrangement (CVA) proposals following its announcement last month that it was aiming to close a large number of its stores.

The comfort shoe brand, which had been progressing with its turnaround plan under new CEO  Ian Watson before the pandemic, is now aiming to operate only 15 physical shops with another 46 set to close. It will mean a much bigger focus on digital for the firm. Understandably, it would also mean redundancies at the business, although the company estimates that around 350 jobs would be saved.

As well as store jobs, the company is also speaking to some staff at its Skelmersdale HQ with a view to culling some posts.

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The CVA, which should complete in March next year if it gets the required level of approval, comes after the company had earlier been talking to its retail landlords about reducing store numbers to a point that kept the company viable. But these talks didn’t reach any agreement.

That’s perhaps no surprise. The company isn't the only business talking to landlords at present, many of which are showing themselves less willing to compromise with their tenants given the financial pressures they themselves are under. This has led a raft of companies to opt for administration filings or CVAs as a way to get out of onerous store leases.