a day ago
Major food and drinks business that supplies Aldi & Tesco is on edge of collapse with staff ‘totally devastated'
A MAJOR baby food manufacturer is facing liquidation as the business is on the verge of collapse.
Workers are "totally devastated" as they are about to lose their livelihood.
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Nourisher, which produces and supplies yogurts, soups and tray meals to Aldi and Tesco, is reportedly shutting down.
The Totton-based firm is set to have its assets sold to settle debts, according to Daily Echo.
Devastated workers
Around 100 locals who are employed by the company are now facing the grim prospect of losing their jobs.
The staff have been crushed to learn the news as they struggle to make ends meet.
Team leader Alan Morgan, who worked at Nourisher for six years, told Daily Echo: "Totally devastated after six years.
"We had a text saying don't come into work until further notice.
"Then we were told that they were looking for an administrator, then they said they were looking for a buyer, then they appointed an administrator, then back to waiting for an administrator, it's all been lies after lies."
Alan hasn't received his paycheck for over 12 weeks, and he's not the only worker left to fend for himself.
He continued: "Because of this, my bills couldn't be paid.
"I had a letter from the landlord seeking possession of my car and bike finance unpaid, struggling to put food on the table, and there are about 50 of us left sorting things out to survive."
Liquidation meeting scheduled
The company has generated millions of pounds in sales annually, producing goods for companies like Mamia.
But it is now awaiting closure with a meeting scheduled in London today to nominate joint liquidators, according to an official notice.
Finbarr Thomas O'Connell and Clare Lloyd, both insolvency professionals from S&W Partners LLP, have been identified as the company's potential liquidators.
The company is currently led by Ajay Chowdhary who was appointed just a month prior following the dismissal of the former directors.
The Sun has reached out to Nourisher for comment.
Other closures
It comes after a major manufacturer has suddenly shut down due to "very difficult" market conditions.
The furniture maker, which supplied "leading brands" across the UK, had to cease trading.
Andrew Paul Furniture, which manufactured bespoke chairs and sofas, has closed down after a decline in sales.
The firm stopped trading on June 26 after 15 years on the market and is about to go into liquidation.
Meanwhile, a popular 138 year old bakery is set to axe 250 jobs following two very difficult years.
Roberts Bakers, which supplies products to major supermarkets like Asda, Morrisons, and Tesco, is set to slash its workforce at its factory in Cheshire.
The decision follows two years of tough challenges, including a devastating fire in 2023 that severely disrupted operations.
The bakery, which employs around 700 people, said it had lost two-thirds of its bread production capacity for over a year after the fire.
Why are retailers closing stores?
RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.
High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.
However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025."
It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024.
End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker.
It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date.
This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023.
It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns.
The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker.
Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations.
Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes.
Professor Bamfield has warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector.
"By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
