4 ms·
The comments here so far about why Maplins has gone into administration miss the point. It's not just about being outmaneuvered by online shops. In their words:
by nanna 9y ago
The comments here so far about why Maplins has gone into administration miss the point. It's not just about being outmaneuvered by online shops. In their words:
> The business has worked hard over recent months to mitigate a combination of impacts from [1] sterling devaluation post Brexit, [2] a weak consumer environment and [3] the withdrawal of credit insurance.
So it's
[1] Brexit having caused the value of the £ to fall (in respect of USD). Gah, Brexit.
[2] Lack of customers. This is probably partly to do with online stores sucking up their custom but also to do with general lack of consumer spending.
[3] Withdrawal of credit insurance. Anyone able to explain this one?
For context its worth adding that Britain's ToysRUs has also just gone into administration too, following their US parent.
- blibble 9y ago[2] is more than everything in there is exorbitantly expensive, 3x Amazon/other physical retailers isn't uncommon I won't even enter one of their shops unless I can't wait to have it delivered
- crdoconnor 9y agoIt's worth bearing in mind that Brexit / value of £ is a handy scapegoat because it takes the heat off the board and executive team. I worked for a company that anybody would have imagined would have suffered heavily from Brexit but it actually ended up coming out ahead because the benefit of weaker competition getting torched outweighted the negatives of lower aggregate demand. I'm sure Brexit had an effect, but I'm equally sure it was deliberately exaggerated. I would imagine it was nearly all online competition and their failure to respond that killed them. 3 is probably simply a tacit recognition that their situation is not going to improve and that they are not a good credit risk.
- billpg 9y agoThe first rule of Brexit Club is that bad things are never the fault of Brexit - but always someone else's fault. Those damn remoaners talking Britain down, they caused Maplin to fail!
- crdoconnor 9y agoHonestly, the only sane contingent on the Brexit<->anti-Brexit spectrum are weak remainers. The rest are either crazies with a near religious fervour (at the extreme ends of the spectrum), those chronically incapable of seeing any point of view other than their own or the easily duped. Some people are all three. Regardless, the first rule of executive club is to shift the credit and shift the blame - such that you get the credit and somebody (or something) else gets the blame.
- pjc50 9y agoI think the PM counts as all three by now; today's absurdity is "absolutely committed to dithering" [on the issue of the Irish border] https://twitter.com/AdamBienkov/status/968828871356403712 https://twitter.com/AdamBienkov/status/968828871356403712
- crdoconnor 9y agoI heard her approach to Brexit described as incompetently executed realpolitik. I think that's an accurate assessment. I don't think the actual outcome matters much to her at all - just staying in power. Also she's getting played. Hence dithering.
- pjc50 9y ago3: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/12/18/maplin_credit_insurance_cut_to_zero_by_euler_hermes/ https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/12/18/maplin_credit_insur... Essentially it sounds like the insurer was worried about their cashflow and decided they no longer wanted to take the risk that Maplin would be unable to pay their suppliers.
- Graham24 9y agoIf you do not have Withdrawal of credit insurance then you have to pay cash for supplies rather than getting them on 30 days terms. it rather screws over your cashflow and is an indicator that your time is nearly up.