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| Quote: Republic is following in the footsteps of a list of High Street stalwarts. These include the music retailer HMV, the camera group Jessops, and the DVD and games rental company Blockbuster. "It's the worst post-Christmas period we've seen in a long time," said Matthew Hopkinson from the Local Data Company. Republic is owned by private equity firm TPG, which bought the company in 2010 in a deal thought to be worth about £300m. According to Anusha Couttigane, TPG had been trying to sell off some stores and persuade landlords to agree to lower rents. "News of its administration suggests that attempts to renegotiate monthly payments have failed, bringing the business to a complete standstill and landlords facing the prospect of more vacant units on the High Street," she said. Matthew Hopkinson said that while some stores may be snapped up, the vast majority of them are in shopping centres, which would be difficult to fill. "HMV and others have also been sitting in shopping centres and therefore I think the number of units which have gone in the last few months in shopping centres will make it far harder than 12 months to refill them," he said. | |
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As it was owned by a private equity firm I wonder how much debt its owners loaded on to the business and if they still profited even as the business failed.