Wiggle - Case Update

Alastair Massey and Anthony Wright of FRP, the joint administrators of Wiggle, have revealed that the company made a significant profit during the administration process despite no going concern sale being achieved.

Wiggle entered administration on 24 October 2023 following news that its parent, Signa Sports United, was restructuring and had been delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. Initially, the joint administrators sought to sell the company as a going concern, but faced issues due to an inability to right size the company’s fixed overheads, including its IT which had been built on the assumption that the company would achieve sustainable annual revenues in excess of £1 billion.

A going concern offer was received from a private equity fund with global operations and accepted by the administrators. However, the potential purchaser backed out of the deal on the day it was supposed to complete. Ultimately, Mike Ashley's Frasers Group ended up buying the brand's intellectual property for £3m at the start of 2024. Unfortunately, because the company was not able to be saved as a going concern, 400 of Wiggle’s 447 employees were eventually made redundant, while a number of others resigned throughout the administration process.

Now, the joint administrators have revealed that, in the time since they were appointed, Wiggle has generated more than £41.7 million in sales, resulting in a profit of £10.4 million. However, they are continuing to discharge the final associated costs of trading and a final trading account may not be available until April 2025.

There are no secured creditors and it is anticipated that preferential and secondary preferential creditors will be paid in full. It is also expected that unsecured creditors will receive a dividend, although the quantum is currently unclear.

The administrators’ report can be accessed HERE. They have been assisted by Osborne Clarke and Hilco.