DUO Bootmakers Limited (10000248): administration
- Status
- Administration ended
- Administration began
- 2020-02-27
- Administrators
- Julie Anne Palmer, Scott Kippax
- Administrators' firm
- Begbies Traynor
- Formerly
- Helen 2016 Limited
- Incorporated
- 2016-02-11
- Location
- Bristol
- Industry
- 47721 Retail sale of footwear in specialised stores
Why it went into administration
- HMRC / tax arrears
- Competition / price pressure
- Weak consumer demand
- Brexit
From the administrators' statement
The Company was incorporated as Helen 2016 Limited on 11 February 2006 and changed its name to Duo Bootmakers Limited (“Duo”) on 3 April 2017.
Duo is a ladies calf-fitting leather boot business, providing a unique offering in the mid-price point footwear sector to women of all shapes and sizes around the world who like to wear knee-high or over the knee fitted leather boots. The collection is crafted using artisan, family-run factories based in Portugal, following stylish designs developed by in-house specialist British footwear designers and technical experts.
The business has a seasonal bias to the Autumn/Winter fashion months and as such makes the bulk of its sales during October to January. The 2019 Autumn/Winter trading period was dogged by ongoing Brexit concerns, followed by a general election. The business model at that time was heavily aligned with British High Street Retail and during the key trading period this was heavily exposed to high levels of promotional and mark-down discounting activity. At that time, the business was constrained within their existing model, which required a more sustained level of discounting than had been planned for. This coupted with lacking consumer confidence on non-essential spend led to a shortfall in both cash and profitability.
Administrators' statement of proposals (2020-05-06) · Companies House register