Concession holders at Clerys say they are owed €2 million following the liquidation of the department store.
In 2012, the Gordon Brothers acquired Clerys department store in Dublin after the company was put into receivership. On 12 June 2015, the firm sold the landmark store to Natrium Limited for €29 million. The department store closed immediately, resulting in a liquidation affecting as many as 460 jobs. The 50 business owners with concessions at Clerys say they have also been hit and are owed €2 million in cash takings.
Couple Nina and Denis Forde took over Clerys hair and beauty salon concession in February 2015, but now effectively have no business. Nina Forde was due to commence maternity leave on the day of the dramatic closure of Clerys. However, she is concerned about the 13 staff they have temporarily laid off.
Some are there 25 years, it’s terrible, so sad.
Lorraine Sweeney of LS Catering ran a cafe in Clerys for 23 years. She has invested €118,000 in the café,
It’s now sitting idle in an empty store.
LS Catering is owed more than €50,000. The future of the ten staff members hangs in the balance. Lorraine Sweeney will have to make them redundant if she cannot redeploy them.
Some 15 concession holders who are collectively owed €750,000 have hired Michael Lavelle of Lavelle Solicitors to advise them on the best way to get their money back. Michael Lavelle believes the solution may lie in the documentation from when the companies were sold,
These monies are clearly held in trust based on the agreement, so there must be some provision in the sale documentation for somebody to have responsibility for that money.
A spokesperson for Natrium says it is a matter for the liquidator whether the concession holders get their money back. Sources also suggest it is unlikely that Natrium will meet the workers who have been made redundant.
Although Natrium has agreed to meet Minister of State for Business and Employment Ged Nash to discuss the Clerys liquidation, no date has yet been set.
Natrium is a joint venture made up of Irish investment group D2 Private Limited and Cheyne Capital Management in the United Kingdom.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 29 June 2015. The reporter is Ingrid Miley.
