Rick Harrison and Howard Smith from Interpath were appointed joint administrators to luxury furnishings business Designers Guild Ltd on 24th September.
Founded in 1970 by Tricia Guild, the company designs and sells luxury furnishing fabrics, wallcoverings, upholstery and bed and bath collections from its flagship store on Kings Road in London, and via its ecommerce platform. It says its philosophy is to combine creativity and innovation with the highest levels of quality across its design, product, service and people.
Interpath says the company had experienced trading challenges for several years: "With a strong European customer base, the company was particularly exposed to the impact of Brexit and the war in Ukraine, both of which weighed heavily on sales while driving up underlying costs across the business.
"In response to these increasing financial pressures, the directors sold the Designers Guild brand and design archive to a third party in 2025, after which the company continued to trade under a license agreement.
"However, the headwinds facing the business persisted. The company faced ongoing constraints on working capital which, combined with industry-wide pressures on supply chain lead times, presented challenges in managing customer order fulfilment.
"Consequently, following a review of the company’s position, and with no solvent solutions available, the directors took the difficult decision to file for the appointment of administrators. As a result, the business ceased to trade and, with regret, 93 members of staff have been made redundant. The joint administrators have retained a small number of staff to assist them as they commence an orderly wind-down of the business."
The administrators say they will now seek to explore options for the business and its assets, including any residual stock.
Rick Harrison, MD at Interpath and joint administrator, says: “For over 50 years, Designers Guild Ltd has been one of the UK’s most recognised and respected names in the world of interior design, so it’s tremendously sad that the business has not been able to overcome its recent challenges.
“As a matter of priority, we will be supporting those members of staff who have been impacted by insolvency, while we also explore options for the company’s remaining assets, including leftover stock.”
A statement on the Designers Guild website from principals (and siblings) Tricia Guild and Simon Jeffreys – founder and creative director, and group chief executive, respectively – notes: "While we are closing the business, we hope the many positive and happy memories will be the ones that stay with us."
