Joules to shut 19 stores despite rescue deal

Troubled fashion brand Joules is to shut 19 stores and cut 133 jobs after it was bought by retail rival Next and founder Tom Joule.

Chichester, Sherborne and Lyme Regis are among the stores which are closing.

Next said it plans to continue to run around 100 of Joules' 124 stores and will transfer over around 1,450 members of shop and head office staff.

The deal will see Next own a 74% stake in the business, with Tom Joule owning the remaining 26% share.

The company drafted in administrators from Interpath Advisory last month after failing to secure emergency funding following a surge in costs and slowdown in customers demand.

The 19 stores which are closing:

CARMARTHEN

CHELTENHAM

CHICHESTER

EDINBURGH

EXETER

GATESHEAD

LYME REGIS

NEWBURY

NORTHCOTE ROAD (London)

OXFORD

PEAK VILLAGE

PETERBOROUGH

REIGATE

SALCOMBE FORE STREET

SHERBORNE

SOUTHWOLD LITTLE JOULE

ST DAVIDS

WATERLOO

WATFORD

Tom Joule said: "After three years away from the operational side, I'm truly looking forward to inspiring teams with clear direction to excite and recapture the imagination of the customer again.

"I'm so pleased that we have been able to strike a deal that protects the future of the company for all its loyal customers, its employees and also for the town of Market Harborough, which have been so central to Joules' success."

It comes weeks after Next bought the brand, websites and intellectual property for online furniture business Made.com after it also collapsed.

The administration resulted in 320 redundancies, while a further 79 employees who had resigned and were working their notice were forced to immediately leave.