The founder and former boss of Made.com has said his offer to buy the furniture retailer before it goes bankrupt was turned down.
Made is due to go into administration this week with the expected loss of around 500 jobs.
Ning Li said he was willing to buy the company with his own money, but his offer “was not accepted”.
Instead, administrators will likely be appointed by PwC and a sale of the Made.com brand name will be announced.
It comes after attempts to find a buyer for the entire deal failed.
Mr. Li, co-founder of Made in 2011, expressed his frustration in an open letter to employees posted on LinkedIn on Monday.
“Last Friday I submitted my third and final proposal to the board and PwC to buy back the company – unfortunately my proposal was not accepted,” said Mr. Li, who resigned as CEO of Made in 2017.
“I’ve had many sleepless nights over the past month watching the company I love so much build its final throes.”
- Pandemic furniture star Made.com is on the brink of collapse
He added that he often thinks of the many things he “could have done to prevent the company from going under”.
Mr. Li said his plan would have preserved at least 100 jobs at the company, kept its offices open and allowed the company to fulfill all ongoing orders.
The retailer has told customers it is committed to fulfilling existing orders but is not offering refunds.
Fashion retailer Next is believed to be in pole position to acquire the Made.com brand name and intellectual property, but there are a number of interested parties.
It’s a dramatic turnaround for the brand, which has been booming during the pandemic and was valued at £775million after going public on the London Stock Exchange last year.
“I can only hope that the new owners will take care of the brand as you have done — with hard work, spirit and soul,” Mr. Li told employees in his letter.
He added that investors had become “terrified” by the furniture company’s situation and had urged him to offer his own money to buy the company.
“I have no idea if other bidders care about saving jobs and refunding customers… Apparently it would be better to wind up the company and sell it in pieces to make some extra money. It doesn’t make any sense to me. But I wanted to let you know that I really tried,” Mr. Li concluded.
The retailer, which sources furniture directly from designers and manufacturers, has gained a loyal following of mostly younger customers. Sales surged during the pandemic lockdowns as people bought more furniture and other products online.
More recently, however, the company has encountered problems as households cut back on large purchases. Global supply chain issues have also caused customers to wait months for deliveries.
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