Former WH Smith stores on the brink of insolvency

WH Smith's former high-street business is on the brink of insolvency after a judge delayed ruling on its restructuring plan.

TG Jones, which formerly traded as WH Smith on the high street, warned it would struggle to pay millions of pounds in bills due on Tuesday after Mr Justice Hildyard said he needed more time to decide the complex case.

The delay threatens to push the retailer to the brink of collapse, putting around 480 stores across Britain and 5,000 jobs at risk.

While TG Jones's owners are still confident the judge will ultimately approve the company's rescue deal, the potential failure is threatening to deal a fresh blow to Britain's already struggling high street. It would also mark another failure of a high-street brand under private-equity ownership.

TG Jones on Monday sought court approval for a plan to shut up to 150 stores and cut rents at hundreds more in an attempt to turn around performance.

Lawyers acting for TG Jones told the High Court that approval of the deal was "enormously urgent" as the company faced tax, payroll and rent payments on Tuesday, the end of the month.

"We haven't got enough to pay off three, so we'd have to make a choice as to which two

Fuente original: Yahoo Finance (https://finance.yahoo.com/small-business/articles/former-wh-smith-stores-brink-185558521.html)