Region. Clive Peeters to close stores

The struggling retailer Clive Peeters, which has five stores and its NSW warehouse in Western Sydney, has gone into voluntary administration with a debt of $160 million. The company will close stores and probably shed several hundred of its 1300 staff in an attempt to keep the 45-store, $500 million-a-year household goods chain trading in some form. The company also has stores in Queensland, Tasmania, Melbourne and regional Victoria. McGrathNichol has been appointed as administrator.

Wetherill Park. Retailer closes warehouse

Clive Peters, consumer electronics retailer, has closed its NSW warehouse, at Wetherill Park, several under-performing stores and slashed annualised costs by 20 per cent, in a bid to return to profitability. “The worst is over because we’ve re-engineered the model and our assumption for 2010 is based on no improvements in retail conditions. The plan is, when the cycle does eventually turn, to try to leverage off that same cost base and improving revenues, which will go straight to the bottom line,” said MD and major shareholder, Greg Smith, in The Australian Financial Review.