Silvermoon founder to begin relaunch in Christchurch

Wednesday, 21 August 2024

Christchurch Paralympian Sophie Pascoe featured in this 2014 advertisement for Silvermoon jewellery.

Jewellery retailer Silvermoon will relaunch in Christchurch after its founder bought the business back from liquidators.

Simon Thwaites founded Silvermoon in 2000 and sold it 17 years later. New owner Peter Lee put the company into liquidation in March this year and its 10 stores nationwide closed.

Thwaites has now negotiated to buy the business back and will open a new store in the Riverside Market laneway on Saturday.

Simon Thwaites founded SIlvermoon and will open a store at Riverside in Christchurch this week.

This will be followed by a second at The Hub Hornby, in November.

The new Silvermoon website, offering online sales, goes live on Wednesday.

Thwaites said he had missed the business and was sad to hear about the liquidation.

Silvermoon in Merivale Mall in March, at the time it was closed when then owner Peter Lee’s company went into liquidation.

“So I reached out to some of my former staff and suppliers to gauge their interest in a relaunch. They were all excited, and we quickly took the plunge.

“It was a no-brainer, really. I am absolutely rapt.”

Thwaites said he would start small “and grow the business gradually and organically”.

“We’re not going to jump back into 10 stores straight away.”

Thwaites in a Silvermoon store, before the business changed hands.

He said the business would sell many of the same lines as before but with an eye to changes in retailing.

“But there won’t be quite the emphasis on gold and diamonds. We will go back to our core products, the silver and our good brands.

He said they would stock brands such as Karen Walker, Stolen Girlfriends Club, Meadowlark, Boh Runga, Kirstin Ash, and Evolve.

The Riverside Mall laneway off Cashel St, where the first relaunched Silvermoon jewellery store will open.

“It’s almost an insane time to go back into retail. But we are confident that we’ll have an offer that people know and a price point that in today’s environment is reasonable and should work.

“It’s going to be successful and sustainable”.

Christchurch would be a good base as half their customers were there previously, he said.

Shoppers swamped the Westfield Riccarton Silvermoon store when it opened in 2009.

When Thwaites originally ran the business, Silvermoon sponsored Canterbury’s Tactix netball team and featured Christchurch Olympic Paralympian Sophie Pascoe, now Dame Sophie, in its advertisements.

In March, when Lee placed the business into liquidation, he cited economic conditions and unforeseen market dynamics as the reason for its trouble.

According to the first liquidator’s report published the same month, the company had debts of $6.2m and assets worth $3.2m. The largest creditor was Inland Revenue, which was owed $1.3m.

The report said as well as challenging retail conditions, slow managerial response and high salary costs were key reasons for the failure.

It is not yet known how much money will be returned to Keeper’s Quarter and Co creditors.