Nearly 300 workers have lost their jobs at a Welsh furniture firm after it entered administration. Westbridge had been a well-known furniture designer and manufacturer, providing sofas and other upholstered goods to numerous high street and premium independent retailers.
The company employed just under 300 staff at its facility in Holywell, Flintshire. In March, Chris Pole and Will Wright from Interpath were appointed joint administrators to Westbridge Furniture Limited and Belfield Leisure Limited, based in Derbyshire. They had maintained both operations while evaluating market interest in purchasing them and protecting the jobs and facilities.
However, the joint administrators released an update on Westbridge earlier this week, confirming that 297 employees had been dismissed, reports Wales Online.
They stated: “Chris Pole and Will Wright from Interpath were appointed joint administrators to the company on March 23, 2026, following operational disruption, weak trading and the loss of a key customer. Since their last update the joint administrators had maintained operations at Westbridge Furniture, while they completed outstanding work in progress and assessed interest in the business.
“Without any viable offers for the business, production ceased on April 2 and the business progressed with a wind-up process. It is with regret that the majority of the business’ 297 remaining staff have since been made redundant.
“The administrators will continue to provide support to those impacted, including supporting them with claims to the Redundancy Payments Service. A small number of staff have been retained to assist the joint administrators in their duties.”
Chris Pole, managing director at Interpath and joint administrator of Westbridge Furniture Limited, said: “The team at Westbridge has shown exceptional professionalism in maintaining production while we explored options.
“Regrettably, as no viable offers for the business were received, it was no longer possible to continue trading and we have had to take the difficult decision to close the business. We recognise this has been a challenging period for staff and I’d like to express my sincere thanks for their commitment.”
The joint administrators have subsequently secured an agreement for the sale of exclusive intellectual property and design rights covering the complete Westbridge independent product catalogue to sofa and upholstery manufacturer Whitemeadow. The new owner intends to liaise with stockists of Westbridge products to preserve continuity wherever feasible.
Chris Pole said: “The agreement to sell the IP and design rights to Whitemeadow preserves Westbridge’s range for retailers. We wish the Whitemeadow team all the best as it embarks on a development programme to reintroduce those designs to the market.” The joint administrators are continuing with operating and assessing options for Belfield Leisure Limited, which also comprises part of The Belfield Group.
Express.co.uk has contacted Westbridge for comment.