A new report has revealed the financial state of the designer label before it officially collapsed in 2024.
The Glasgow fashion firm collapsed in 2024 (Image: Getty Images )
Ted Baker is said to have plunged into administration with more than £100 million worth of debt. The reveal comes just after the Scottish fashion firm announced a small comeback.
Founded in Glasgow in 1988, the luxury brand, which operates under the No Ordinary Designer label, once had more than 500 stores across the world. It initially began as a shirt specialist but went on to offer a wide range of clothing items.
After struggling financially for a few years, it officially collapsed following a deal that went sour between Authentic Brands Group (ABG), the owner of No Ordinary Designer Label, and Dutch operating partner AARC that was meant to run store operations.
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ABG then appointed Teneo Financial Advisory as administrators in a move that would close down all remaining stores in 2024, with five being in Scotland. It also resulted in more than 900 staff members losing their job.
Now new documents have revealed the financial state of the Glasgow-founded firm just before it plunged into administration. A report has found that investors and 689 creditors face losing more than £70 million, according to the Herald.
An update from the administrators has also found that the company book had a debt of more than £100 million. Meanwhile, a further £16.4 million was said to be owed to the Secured Trust Bank (STB.)
The administrators said: “STB has been repaid in full in respect of its floating charge security and has released its fixed charge security. STB’s fixed and floating charge securities have also been recorded as satisfied.”
Ted Baker Holdings Limited (TBLH), an entity controlled by its former owners, was also owed around £27.3 million, although some of this was paid back including a debt assignment worth £4.9 million and an earlier distribution of £504,000.
According to company books, unsecured creditors were owed around £57 million, with Teneo receiving receiving 689 claims to date for a total of £50.3 million, “which is broadly in line with the statement of affairs”.
Two Scottish-based firms are included on the list of creditors that are owed money. Estate agent Savills is said to be owed £42,000, while MJ Mapp Limited, also in Glasgow, was owed £132,000.
Administrators also found that the company has a “residual shortfall of £21.9m”, adding: “We do not anticipate any further distributions will be paid to TBHL during the administration.”
They added: “A total dividend of £693,978 representing 1.25p in the pound was declared to unsecured creditors during the period. This dividend is the first and final unsecured prescribed part dividend in the administration, and was paid after the period end of this report.”
Ted Baker’s collapse was triggered in 2024 after ABG Group, which bought the designer brand in 2022, provided AARC with a license to operate Ted Baker operations in 2023, leading the Dutch firm to acquire shares within the company.
However, administrators at Teneo said that the company’s trading “suffered a significant deterioration” and that expected equity funding “did not materialise”, leading to “a large amount of arrears with its supplier base totalling £50m.”
The winding-up process is set to be completed b the end of March 2027, with administrators advising: “We do not anticipate that it will be necessary to further extend the period of the administration.”
It comes after the Daily Record reported that Ted Baker was in the process of returning to the high street, as it returned with its ‘shop-in-shop’ experience that is now located in the Selfridges shop based in Manchester’s Trafford Centre.
