Tesco buys Paperchase brand after stationery chain collapses into administration

Hundreds of jobs remain at risk as supermarket will not buy Paperchase’s stores

Tesco has bought the Paperchase brand and intellectual property after the stationery chain collapsed into adminstration this morning.

Despite the surprise move, hundreds of jobs remain at risk as the supermarket’s deal will not include any of the retailer’s 106 stores.

Paperchase employs around 820 people across 106 stores, though the company has not yet confirmed how many jobs will be lost.

The chain said its shops would continue running in the “short term”, and all stores will remain open and trading as normal.

Jan Marchant, managing director of home and clothing at Tesco, said: “Paperchase is a well-loved brand by so many, and we’re proud to bring it to Tesco stores across the UK.

“We have been building out plans to bring more brands and inspiration to the ranges we currently offer, and this will help us to take those plans further.

“We look forward to sharing more with our customers in due course.”

Tesco has bought the Paperchase brand and intellectual property (PA)

Paperchase appointed insolvency practitioners from Begbies Traynor Group (BTG) this morning.

A statement said: “The Joint Administrators can confirm that the intellectual property and brand name owned by the Company has been sold to Tesco Stores Limited.

“Unfortunately, despite a comprehensive sales process, no viable offers were received for the Company, or its business and assets, on a going concern basis. However, this sale reflects the interest in the well-known and established brand and will enable the brand to continue in Tesco stores across the UK.

“The Joint Administrators will continue trading the Company’s operations in the short term with all stores remaining open and trading as normal. The Joint Administrators will continue to monitor trading in the stores and further updates will be provided in due course.”

Paperchase has fallen into administration (Getty Images)

Paperchase said it would “strongly urge” customers to redeem gift cards as soon as possible because they will not be accepted after two weeks.

Begbies Traynor, which was appointed administrator of the stationery retailer on Tuesday, said that it would continue to monitor trading in stores and provide further updates in “due course”.

The move comes after the company was put up for sale four months following a change of ownership.

The stationery chain was taken over in August by retail investor Steve Curtis who has previously backed Jigsaw and Tie Rack.

Paperchase also previously fell into administration two years ago, with the closure of 37 stores in January 2021 as a consequence of the pandemic.

After the chain’s last insolvency, Paperchase was owned by Permira Credit.

The company had almost 1,300 employees and traded from more than 125 sites across the UK, including concessions at House of Fraser, Selfridges and many Next stores.

The company is one of many businesses that took a hit during Covid-19, such as fast fashion firm Missguided and online furniture retailer Made.com.