Home-grown children’s wear brand Rhubarb has collapsed into voluntary administration.
Originally founded in 2002 as a homewares designer and importer, Rhubarb Enterprises began selling children’s clothing and products in 2008 from its first retail store in Doncaster in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
By the end of 2012, there were six Rhubarb stores operating, with four located in Melbourne, one in Sydney and one in Brisbane.
However, all six outlets were closed on Friday when Rahul Goyal and Craig Shepard of KordaMentha were appointed as administrators of Rhubarb Enterprises, as well as related companies Rhubarb Investments and Rhubarb Retail.
Goyal told SmartCompany this morning KordaMentha will be selling the company’s intellectual property and brand, which the administrators believe still hold “some value”.
He says Rhubarb founders Katlin and Nick Harper had “a really tough last 12 months” and had been unable to find a buyer for the business during that time.
“It got to the point where they had to pull the pin,” Goyal says.
Rhubarb employed nine full-time employees, along with a number of casual employees, at the time of Goyal and Shepard’s appointment.
National Australia Bank is owed “quite a lot of…