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🇮🇪 Ireland /Economy & Trade

‘Give them no hope’: Rathwood messages show Keogh brothers remain involved

From Irish Times · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Documents & data Context piece
  • James and Thomas Keogh remain involved in Rathwood’s day-to-day operations after the retailer’s sale to a consortium led by Kevin Nolan, according to internal messages seen by The Irish Times.
  • The messages discuss staff redundancies, creditors and business management after about 7,000 customers were left owed undelivered goods and nearly €3 million.
  • The High Court approved a €750,000 rescue scheme in July, under which customers were promised refunds of 0.25 per cent.

James and Thomas Keogh remain closely involved in Rathwood despite the troubled retailer’s sale to a consortium led by Cork corporate adviser Kevin Nolan, internal messages seen by The Irish Times indicate.

The messages show the brothers discussing which employees should stay or leave, how creditors should be handled and how the business should operate after its collapse into examinership in April. Rathwood faced growing complaints over undelivered orders, and it later emerged that about 7,000 customers had paid for products they never received. The company owed close to €3 million to customers.

Give them no hope, only 3 days a week or €5,000

· James KeoghHe suggested limiting staff hours or offering a €5,000 redundancy package.

In one exchange last month, James Keogh suggested a €5,000 redundancy package for some staff was a “clever” move. “Give them no hope, only 3 days a week or €5,000,” he told Nolan, adding that employees might leave if they knew there was “NO hope of the big pay-off”. He also described employees as “scared” of the new chief executive, saying this was “ideal”.

NO hope of the big pay-off

· James KeoghHe said employees might leave if they believed they had no chance of receiving a larger redundancy payment.

Other messages show Keogh marking some employees as “let go” or “really needs to go”. He dismissed a proposal to add local market and craft stalls to Rathwood’s Christmas experience, calling the stalls a “waste of time and never pay” and describing “craft people” as “painful”.

The correspondence also covers relations with suppliers and creditors. When Nolan said a supplier was desperate to get back on track, Keogh replied that this was “no harm”. Nolan said they should keep the supplier waiting until early the following week and suggested using his dissatisfaction as leverage. Keogh responded with a “100 per cent” emoji.

scared

· James KeoghHe described employees’ attitude toward the new chief executive.

The High Court approved a €750,000 rescue scheme in July. Customers owed money were promised refunds of just 0.25 per cent. Judge Rory Mulcahy said the way Rathwood had been managed before examinership remained of “significant concern”, noting liabilities of more than €21 million. The Keogh family directors undertook not to act as company directors for five years, but the messages indicate that the brothers have continued to participate in the business.

significant concern

· Judge Rory MulcahyThe judge described the company’s pre-examinership management in court.
About this summary

Originally published by Irish Times in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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