Morrisons offers to hire My Local staff after supermarket collapses

The news of My Local collapse follows the failures of BHS and Austin Reed

Morrisons sold My Local for £25 million in September last year (Getty)

Morrisons has offered to hire staff from My Local after the convenience store chain went into administration on Tuesday, putting nearly 1700 jobs at risk.

Greybull Capital, which bought My Local from Morrisons just nine months ago, has hired KPMG as its administrator as it closes 130 stores. It is understood that staff were briefed about the decision on Tuesday.

Morrisons has said it is prepared to offer work to any former employee who transferred to My Local after the sale of the business nine months ago.

“We are saddened and disappointed to learn that My Local is about to enter administration. We want to help our former colleagues who now work for My Local,” a Morrisons spokesperson said.

“We can therefore confirm that if no buyer is found, and stores close, we will welcome our former colleagues back to a job at Morrisons,” it added.

Morrisons sold My Local for £25 million in September last year to a team led by retail veteran Mike Green funded by Greybull Capital.

This means Morrisons could face a £20 million liabilities bill as part of the original sale agreement, if My Local fails to find a buyer, according to reports.

Joanne McGuiness, national office of the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) said that employees at My Local were devastated by the news that the company is going into administration.

“Having been sold to Morrisons last year, there was a mood of optimism that the new owners could turn the business around,” McGuiness said.

“We are talking with the company in a bid to save jobs and get the best deal for staff. In the meantime Usdaw is providing the support, advice and representation they need at this unsettling time,“ she added.

The news of My Local collapse follows the failures of BHS and Austin Reed which put 11,000 and 1,000 jobs at risk respectively.

Sir Philip Green has apologised to BHS staff during a parliamentary hearing last week for his handling of the demise of the company, which went into administration in April.

He is to offer 1,000 BHS staff jobs at his Arcadia retail empire, a week after being grilled by MPs. The workers are currently employed at Arcadia concessions, such as Dorothy Perkins and Wallis, within BHS outlets.