Plug pulled on Wax Lyrical candle chain
US owner places UK store operation in receivership
December 27 2002.
US candlemaker Blyth has placed the UK Wax Lyrical retail chain into administrative receivership.
The company said the 35-strong chain of candle stores, which generate annual sales of approximately $16m, has been hit by the increased sales of candles and related products through mainstream retail outlets.
Accountancy firm Grant Thornton has been appointed as receiver, and will try to find a buyer for the business. The Wax Lyrical stores are almost entirely located in shopping centres, and employ around 175 people. Grant Thornon said it would review the situation on a store-by-store basis.
Blyth, which first invested in Wax Lyrical in 1998, and bought a majority interest in February 2000, said: “Wax Lyrical has been unable to achieve sustained profitability, largely due to the fact that distribution of candles and related accessories has become increasingly more mainstream, with the major retail chains as well as specialty retailers offering a wide variety of competitive product.”
Blyth wholesales it products in the UK and Europe and also markets directly to consumers through the PartyLite direct sales business. These operations will continue.
Blyth chairman and CEO Robert B. Goergen, said: “Blyth’s investment in Wax Lyrical offered us an additional opportunity to understand the marketplace for home fragrance products in the UK and Europe. However, specialty retailers have faced significant challenges in recent years as the economy slowed.
“In addition, fragranced candles have become more readily available to consumers, as evidenced by the success of our direct sales and consumer wholesale operations, undermining the viability of niche players such as Wax Lyrical.
“We have learned a lot, with the results clearly indicating that our combined direct sales and consumer wholesale strategy is the preferred method of growth for Blyth in what remains a very attractive marketplace for our products.”
Wax Lyrical was founded in 1990 by Marjorie Bannister and Mark Chessel, with the first shop located in Richmond, south-west London.
