Tue, 25 Feb 2014 | ADMINISTRATION
Computer Bookshops Limited (CBL) – a wholesaler and retailer of books, software and digital media – has entered administration with 24 jobs lost as an immediate result.
The Birmingham-based company was founded in 1978 and has over 350,000 titles in its portfolio. However, the firm could not avoid administration after one of its key suppliers left the market and sales declined.
Grant Thornton was appointed as CBL’s administrator and the immediate decision was taken to cut 24 employees’ jobs. David Bennett and Nigel Morrison of Grant Thornton have kept a staff of 26 to help continue the company’s trading while they look for a sale.
CBL’s key divisions include wholesaler CBL distribution, its web-based training provider cblearning.com, and its retail websites such as bookaxis.com and computermanuals.co.uk.
David Bennett, partner in Grant Thornton’s advisory team based in Birmingham, said: “CBL boasts an enviable breadth of customer relationships, with a reputation for service delivery which is second to none in the sector.
“It has a strong online presence, which has seen significant growth in recent years and an expanding range of titles, including business books, lifestyle titles and gaming manuals.”
In his statement, Bennett added that despite all this, administrators had been called upon because of CBL’s failure to “diversify quickly enough” following the decline of the high street book market and the fact that one of its main suppliers had left the market.
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