Home shopping channel QVC seeks bankruptcy protection
The owner of home shopping network pioneer QVC has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States.
The filing from parent company QVC Group, which also owns HSN, formerly the Home Shopping Network, comes as long-running TV shopping networks struggle to adapt to the rapid shift of consumers now tuning into livestreams on TikTok or online marketplaces like Shein.
QVC Group, which applied to the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, said that its international operations were not involved in the process.
It has more than US$1 billion ($1.4 billion) in cash on hand and has said it has sufficient liquidity to meet its business obligations.
QVC Group added that all its brands are operating as usual, including customer-facing operations in the UK, Germany, Japan and Italy.
QVC will continue to serve its customers across all channels and platforms for HSN and Cornerstone Brands.
“Bankruptcy may allow QVC the restructuring needed to operate on better financial terms. But this does not solve the need to reinvent and become relevant,” Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, said in a statement. he said.
QVC Group has for some time sought to revive flagging sales, which are down almost 30 percent in 2024 from a peak of more than $14 billion in 2020.
Shares of QVC Group, which were worth more than $900 a decade ago, were trading below $3 earlier this week.
The company plans to emerge from bankruptcy protection in about 90 days.
