Mazars to oversee winding up of Arcadia Group

Mazars has been appointed as liquidators of Philip Green’s collapsed retail empire Arcadia Group -with the group looking to “repay key creditors”, including HMRC.

Arcadia operated numerous high-street brands across the UK and globally, including Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins. 

At its peak Arcadia employed over 13,000 people – however, the majority of the group went into administration in November 2020.

Mazars was appointed by the directors to oversee the liquidation of 21 companies within the group following a “competitive tender process”. 

The group said it now has been tasked with “administering the repayment of approximately £30m to creditors”. 

The largest of these creditors is HMRC, which is owed a “substantial” VAT liability across a number of these companies.

Adam Harris and Guy Hollander of Mazars have been appointed as joint liquidators to oversee the process. 

Adam Harris, joint liquidator, said: “The liquidation of the Arcadia companies is a large and complex undertaking, and our team will draw on its collective experience to maximise returns for creditors, including HMRC.

“Over the coming months our aim is to repay as much as possible of the group’s outstanding unpaid VAT liability.”