Triumph Furniture of Merthyr Tydfil folds with 252 job losses

A furniture company has gone bust with 252 job losses after reporting “a catastrophic collapse in orders”.

Triumph Furniture of Merthyr Tydfil, which has bases in the town and Dowlais, supplied more than 600 furniture sellers, as well as being a major supplier of central government.

The firm went into administration on Tuesday, after an “unprecedented fall in sales” over the last 10 weeks.

Administrators said 239 jobs will go immediately.

The remaining 13 will be kept on in the short-term to help administrators.

It was established in 1946 as a family-run business, with chief executive Andrew Jackson describing its demise as fast.

He said: “The family is devastated by this appalling outcome and are extremely concerned for the welfare of all Triumph employees and their families at this terrible time.

“The business has suffered a rapid and catastrophic collapse in orders since the middle of July, which has been impossible to recover from, despite every effort.”

He said Triumph had enjoyed “incredible loyalty and support” from the people of Merthyr Tydfil and the surrounding valleys, which has been a “key element” in its success and longevity.

‘Especially sad’

“All connected with the business over these years should be very proud of what has been achieved,” he added.

Administrator Huw Powell, of Begbies Traynor, said attempts were made to secure major customer backing and additional funding to support a restructure or sale of the business.

But he added: “Due to the speed at which order levels reduced, these efforts ultimately proved unsuccessful before funding ran out.”

Administrators are now working with staff to help them access support.

Mr Powell said: “It is especially sad to see such a prominent business fail when there are so many redundancies involved.

“We know this will be devastating news for those concerned.”