Rivers: Discount apparel retailer to close its last 136 stores
Historic Australian retailer Rivers will close its remaining 136 stores, resulting in 650 job losses, after the receivers for parent company Mosaic Brands failed to find a buyer.
Historic Australian retailer Rivers will close its remaining 136 stores, resulting in 650 job losses, after the receivers for parent company Mosaic Brands failed to find a buyer.
Receivers KPMG on Thursday said all remaining Rivers stores will close by mid-April, with the precise date of each closure depending on stock levels at each location.
“Unfortunately, a sale of Rivers was not able to be achieved,” said KPMG turnaround and restructuring partner David Hardy.
“The Receivers would like to thank the Mosaic and Rivers employees who have all worked tirelessly during this difficult period, as well as Rivers’ loyal customer base who have continued to support the brands.”
Rivers is the seventh brand to close down in ASX-listed Mosaic Brand’s attempted restructure.
It culled the Rockmans, Autograph, Crossroads, W Lane and BeMe labels in September.
That internal restructuring attempt proved unsuccessful, leading to Mosaic Brands’ appointment of KPMG as receivers, and FTI Consulting as voluntary administrators, in October.
The receivers wound down the Katies brand in December, resulting in 480 job losses.
KPMG is still seeking buyers for the brands remaining in the Mosaic Brands portfolio, including Millers and Noni B.
While its retail lineage dates back to the 1860s, the Rivers label was officially born in 1979 through a partnership with footwear brand Diana Ferrari and wholesale retailers like Myer, David Jones, and Betts.
The first standalone Rivers store opened in 1983 in George Street, Sydney, and grew to 100 stores around the country by the end of 2000.
Specialty Fashion Group, home to Autograph, Katies, Crossroads, and Millers, acquired Rivers in 2013 for $5 million.
Noni B Holdings acquired those brands from Specialty Fashion Group in 2018 for $31 million before renaming to Mosaic Group.
In recent decades, Rivers established itself as one of Australia’s most prominent discount apparel and footwear retailers.
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