Office Outlet administrators announce store closures and over 160 job losses

Office Outlet is to close a swathe of stores and cut over 160 jobs as the troubled business looks for a rescue buyer.

The company, which was formerly known as Staples, went into administration in March.

Richard Hawes, joint administrator and partner at Deloitte, said that although advisers were still open to a sale of all or part of the business, some stores must be closed.

Nine will shut down on April 7, with a further seven on April 10.

The first wave affects shops in Beckton, Catterick, Gloucester, Newport (Isle of Wight), Merton, Newcastle, Plymouth, Staples Corner (London), and Stratford.

The second will affect Cardiff, Carlisle, Manchester, Old Kent Road, Southampton, Walsall and Weston Super Mare.

The move will result in a total of 161 redundancies.

This is in addition to the 106 jobs which were lost at the company’s head office and distribution centre in Daventry last month.

At the time of administration, Office Outlet had 1,200 employees and 90 stores.

US-based stationery giant Staples agreed to sell its UK shops to Hilco Capital, the former owner of HMV, in late 2016.

The chain was then renamed Office Outlet, while a separate online business continues to operate in the UK under the name Staples.

In 2018, a management buyout led by chief executive Chris Yates took control of the company.

It is not connected with the online-only business that currently trades under the Staples name in the UK.