Arev Brands, which owns 49pc of the company, has already provided loans of £1.5m this year. The investor admitted on Thursday afternoon it was unable to come up with new funds, throwing the future of the London couturier into doubt.

In his heyday, Sir Hardy Amies made suits for 1966 World Cup-winning England football team and costumes for Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Sir Hardy died in 2003 but the business carried on at its Savile Row base, known as the House.

Hardy Amies has been expanding across Britain and in Japan, but reported a pre-tax loss of £1.6m last year, as its womenswear collections flopped.

In June, the company said it would keep opening menswear stores in cities including Belfast and Bristol but restrict womenswear to the flagship Savile Row store.

Sir Hardy set up his boutique in 1946 and first designed for the Queen in 1952. A 2006 exhibition of her dresses at Buckingham Palace, to mark the Queen's 80th birthday, showed numerous examples of his work, worn on state visits to Mexico, Canada and the United States.

Shares in Amies were suspended while the company assesses whether it can continue as a going concern. It is looking at options including going into administration.

Separately, home furnishings chain Rosebys went into administration today.

Rosebys, based in Rotherham, has 280 stores and 2,000 staff around the country. Adminstrators KPMG said the retailer will continue to trade while they look for a buyer.

The company was running at a loss and recently failed to secure new loans, Howard Smith of KPMG said.


See Original Article

Call now for help with corporate debts.

Call us on: 0800 071 1616

Email us on: info@debtsgone.co.uk

Website: www.debtsgone.co.uk