John Lewis of Hungerford in administration, name to live on

John Lewis of Hungerford Limited, the bespoke kitchen maker that builds its cabinetry at Grove Business Park on Downsview Road near Wantage, went into administration on 7 July 2026. Notices published in The London Gazette on 3 August show two of its directors intend to keep the business running under the same name, the step the insolvency rules require of directors who acquire and carry on a failed company’s business. (The Gazette, notice 5184829)

Despite the name, the company is independent and has no connection with the John Lewis Partnership department store group.

What the record shows

The appointment notice, published on 15 July, records that Simon Wall and Andreas Arakapiotis of insolvency firm bk plus Limited were appointed joint administrators on 7 July by order of the High Court, under case number CR-2026-005295. It gives the company’s business as “manufacture of kitchen furniture” and its registered and trading address as Grove Business Park, Downsview Road, Wantage, OX12 9FA. (The Gazette, appointment of administrators, notice 5173765)

Companies House shows the company was incorporated on 16 June 1977 and traded as John Lewis of Hungerford PLC until August 2023, so the administration comes weeks after its 49th anniversary. Its registered office was moved to bk plus’s Walsall address on 21 July, and a statement of the administrators’ proposals was filed on 10 August; that document, which normally sets out what has happened to the business and what creditors can expect, was not yet available to view when we checked. (Companies House, company 01317377)

The name will carry on

On 3 August, Kiran Noonan, a director since October 2013, and Sophie Randall, a director appointed in October 2025, each published a notice under Rule 22.4 of the Insolvency Rules 2016 of their intention to carry on the business under the name John Lewis of Hungerford Limited, should the company enter insolvent liquidation. Section 216 of the Insolvency Act 1986 normally bars the directors of a company that goes into insolvent liquidation from trading under its name; the Rule 22.4 route is open to a person who acquires the whole, or substantially the whole, of the business from the administrator or liquidator, and the notice must be published within 28 days of the acquisition completing. (The Gazette, notice 5184827)

Neither notice says who has acquired the business, or on what terms. The administrators’ proposals should set that out once published.

The company’s website was still trading normally when we checked on 11 August, advertising three showrooms across England including its flagship in Fulham, and describing cabinetry handmade at “our Wantage workshop”. It carries no statement about the administration. (John Lewis of Hungerford)

What it means for you

If the company owes you money, whether you are a customer with a deposit paid on a kitchen, a supplier or a member of staff, you are a creditor in the administration. The Gazette notice directs enquiries to Chloe-Jane Birch at bk plus on 01922 922050 or chloe-jane.birch@bkplus.co.uk. (The Gazette, notice 5173765)

If you have an order in progress, the notices do not say how orders placed before 7 July are being handled; the administrators’ proposals are the document to watch, and the contact above is the route to a direct answer.

For Grove and Wantage, the name re-use notices point to the business continuing rather than closing, but the public record does not yet say in what form, or what it means for the workshop on Downsview Road. We will report the administrators’ proposals when they are published. Local firms are listed in our business directory.