Blockbuster closes 62 stores, 427 jobs lost

[Yukimura Sanada]

Blockbuster closes 62 stores, 427 jobs lost

Reuters
December 5, 2013, 9:30 pm

People walk past a Blockbuster shop in south London January 16, 2013. REUTERS/Paul Hackett

LONDON (Reuters) - British film and computer game rental chain Blockbuster said it is to close 62 stores and lay off 427 employees and warned its remaining 91 stores and 808 staff could face the same fate.

Private equity firm Gordon Brothers Europe, which purchased Blockbuster for an undisclosed sum in March, put it into administration on November 11, when it was trading from 264 stores, employing 2,000.

Administrator Moorfields Corporate Recovery said on Thursday it had not received any acceptable offers for the business.

Many British retailers are still finding the going tough despite signs of economic recovery as inflation continues to outpace wage rises and competition from the Internet intensifies.

(Reporting by James Davey; editing by Sarah Young)