Employees suffer as Wilton deal sours

THE owners of a Cork shopping centre asked Marks and Spencer to pay more than double the fixed lease rate for the centre’s anchor site just days before M&S was due to take over the plot from Roches Stores, according to M&S.

Steps were being taken last night to resurrect the deal for M&S to take over the 45,000 square foot site at the Wilton Shopping Centre from Roches Stores before 172 workers find themselves without their jobs.

Those workers were due to transfer from Roches to M&S as part of the deal before it opened to the public in early 2007.

M&S claimed that the owners including major shareholder Joe O’Donovan, in the last few days sought a lease of €1.8 million from M&S, more than twice the fixed arbitration rate of €760,000, which it had agreed to take on from Roches Stores.

The British retailer refused.

Then over the weekend, just as M&S was preparing to take over the site as it had agreed with Roches Stores, the deal fell through.

The owners refused to comment on M&S’s claims, but said M&S pulled out of the deal, that the entire site had not been available to them, but that 20,000 square feet was still on offer. They also said they were already at advanced stage in negotiations with other ‘top retailers’ to take up the remaining square footage.

They also criticised Roches for ceasing trading without notifying the owners of the shopping centre.

Hamilton Osborne King chairman, Aidan O’Hogan, who is representing M&S said it was Roches Stores which pulled out of the deal because the owners refused to transfer the lease. He added that the deal M&S had with Roches was for the entire 45,000 square foot plot, otherwise the retailer would not have been able to accommodate the 172 staff.

“The landlord attempted to negotiate with M&S for more than twice the fixed rate but was refused. M&S is still willing to take the assignment,” he added. “M&S would be spending €8-10 million in the fit out. That is a very significant investment.”

By now Marks and Spencer were preparing to walk away from the deal.

Then yesterday afternoon, as hundreds of staff protested outside the former Roches Stores store, Mr O’Donovan met with union representatives of the 172 workers.

Afterwards the Wilton Centre owners issued a new statement saying they were prepared to offer M&S the whole plot in the centre and the centre had instructed its agents to contact M&S about reopening talks.

Roches Stores were unavailable for comment on this latest development and Mr O’Hogan said he had not heard from Mr O’Donovan’s representatives about it.

In a statement distancing itself from the situation a spokesman for Howard Holdings — which is also a shareholder in the Wilton Centre — said it is only the minority shareholder in the shopping centre and that it has specific responsibility for the redevelopment of the centre and is not involved in its everyday running.

Last night Roches’ staff were due to meet with representatives of their union Mandate.

They are still being paid by Roches, which closed three weeks ago.