Mike Ashley among bidders eyeing HMV
According to reports, Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley is among bidders seeking to purchase HMV, which recently announced its second administration in six years.
The music and film retailer officially fell into administration during the festive period, and was denied a £3.35m government tax cut before it entered administration according to new figures.
HMV blamed a “tsunami” of retail challenges, including business rate levels, saying it paid £15m on sales of £277m meaning £1 in every £18.5 going through the tills went on property taxes.
Real estate adviser Altus Group said HMV should have been a big ‘winner’ under the 2017 business rates revaluation seeing the rateable values on 87 of its stores in England used to calculate business rates liabilities fall by almost a fifth down 19.4%.
Sports Direct also rescued Evans Cycles after it fell into administration on 7 September, and acquired House of Fraser in August 2018 for £90m in a deal that came just minutes after the department store chain entered administration.
