Support the Guardian

Fund independent journalism with £5 per month

Business Today
Business live
Greed blamed for failure of Wilko rescue deal as MPs examine retailer’s collapse
Live  
Greed blamed for failure of Wilko rescue deal as MPs examine retailer’s collapse
Canadian tycoon Doug Putman says “everyone got a little bit greedy” as he reveals why rescue bid for Wilko failed
Headlines
Retail  
Sunak risks fuelling inflation with high taxes and Brexit red tape, stores warn
Sunak risks fuelling inflation with high taxes and Brexit red tape, stores warn
Shein  
Chinese fashion giant has filed paperwork to float on US stock market – reports
Global Investment Summit  
UK will not return to close relationship with China of Cameron era, Sunak says
House prices  
Average £18,000 knocked off UK property asking price, says Zoopla
Property  
Average rent in Great Britain up by more than a quarter since start of Covid
Automotive  
Tesla sues Sweden’s transport agency in escalation of strike row
Bank of England  
UK interest rates will stay high for some time, stresses governor
Metro Bank  
Rescue deal can go ahead after shareholders back it
Rail  
Eurostar services from Amsterdam to London to be suspended for six months
Sizewell C  
UAE approached to invest in nuclear power plant
Today's agenda
Greed has been blamed for the failure to agree a rescue deal for Wilko, as MPs prepare to examine the collapse of the discount retailer this autumn.

Doug Putman, the billionaire Canadian business executive, says he came very close to agreeing a deal that would have saved thousands of jobs, but was thwarted by the homeware chain’s suppliers.

Putman told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that he really thought he had a deal to take over Wilko, which closed its doors last month with the loss of around 12,000 jobs.

But, he explains, companies – such as Wilko’s IT suppliers – refused to budge on fees they wanted to charge for the transition.

Putman says these companies were “super inflexible” about cooperating for the “four months or so” that he would have needed their systems before transitioning to his own.

Putman, who owns HMV, says: "I thought we did have a deal. We thought we would, we would get that over the line. But for those four months, the amount of money that the companies wanted to charge made the Wilco deal literally impossible to do. And that was something that was found out really late in the game."

He cites a landlord who hosted Wilko’s servers, in a tiny room, but wanted to charge rent on their whole million square feet facility for Putnam to keep the server.He explains: "So I would say everyone just got a little bit greedy, and unfortunately, weren’t thinking about the 10,000-plus jobs that would have been saved and were only thinking about their little piece of it."

Wilko fell into administration in August, as it struggled with debts of £625m.

Putman offered to take on up to 350 of Wilko’s 400 stores and ensure the main creditors – led by the restructuring specialist Hilco – were paid. But that offer collapsed in mid-September, and was followed by the closure of the company.

Putman says today: "PwC [Wilko’s administrators] really wanted a deal. We wanted a deal. We had a deal.

"We had an agreement and I think these things came out of the woodwork for both of us, where we were both a bit stunned."

MPs on the business and trade committee will dig into the colllapse of Wilko today, when they hold a hearing with the firm’s former chair, Lisa Wilkinson (who stepped down in January) and Mark Jackson, the company’s CEO.

The committee say they will examine:
• the Wilkinson family’s justification for taking millions of pounds in dividends out of the firm, even when it was heavily indebted;
•what attempts were made to save the business and whether crucial advice was ignored; and
•the £50 million shortfall in the company’s pension fund.

They’ll also hear from union representatives and industry experts about what went wrong, and quiz business minister Kevin Hollinrake.

The agenda
• 10am GMT: Business and trade committee hearing on Wilko’s collapse begins
• 10.15am GMT: Treasury committee questions OBR officials on autumn statement
• 2pm GMT: US house price index for October
• 2.15pm GMT: Treasury committee questions economists on autumn statement
• 3pm GMT: US consumer confidence index for October

We’ll be tracking all the main events throughout the day ...
Nils Pratley on finance
UK Global Investment Summit is very nice – but the £29.5bn figure is pure hype
UK Global Investment Summit is very nice – but the £29.5bn figure is pure hype
Opinion
Global Investment Summit  
Sunak woos business elite with royal welcome – but they seek certainty
Sunak woos business elite with royal welcome – but they seek certainty
The real story of the OpenAI debacle is the tyranny of big tech
Courtney Radsch
Media
Britain's Got Talent  
David Walliams settles with production company over leaked comments
David Walliams settles with production company over leaked comments
I'm a Celebrity ...  
Grace Dent leaves show on medical grounds
Spotlight
Can we solve our addiction to consumerism?
Too much stuff  
Can we solve our addiction to consumerism?
Alarmed by the rising tide of waste we are all creating, my family and I decided to try to make do with much less. But while individual behaviour is important, real change will require action on a far bigger scale
Popular on business
Unilever accused of breaking plastics pledge as sachet sales approach 53bn
Unilever accused of breaking plastics pledge as sachet sales approach 53bn
Advent calendar of rail strikes set to shred service as deal is severely delayed
Powerful Lords committee damns Bank of England over inflation forecasts
The rise of undersea champagne: ‘I have never tasted such a wine in my life’
Let boardrooms look beyond shareholder returns to drive productivity, report urges
Get in touch
If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email newsletters@theguardian.com
 

… there is a good reason why people choose not to support the Guardian.

Not everyone can afford to pay for the news right now. That's why we choose to keep our coverage of Westminster and beyond, open for everyone to read. If this is you, please continue to read for free.

Over the past 13 years, our investigative journalism exposing the shortcomings of Tory rule – austerity, Brexit, partygate - has resulted in resignations, apologies and policy corrections. And with an election just round the corner, we won’t stop now. It’s crucial that we can all make informed decisions about who is best to lead the UK.

Here are three good reasons to choose to support us today.

1

Our quality, investigative journalism is a scrutinising force at a time when the rich and powerful are getting away with more and more.

2

We are independent and have no billionaire owner controlling what we do, so your money directly powers our reporting.

3

It doesn’t cost much, and takes less time than it took to read this message.

Choose to power the Guardian’s journalism for years to come, whether with a small sum or a larger one. If you can, make the choice to support us on a monthly basis from just £2. It takes less than a minute to set up, and you can rest assured that you’re making a big impact every single month in support of open, independent journalism. Thank you.

 
Manage your emails | Unsubscribe | Trouble viewing?
You are receiving this email because you are a subscriber to Business Today. Guardian News & Media Limited - a member of Guardian Media Group PLC. Registered Office: Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU. Registered in England No. 908396