Aberdeen workers are among 1,500 staff at Carpetright who will lose their jobs today despite a deal by rival flooring retailer Tapi to save some of its stores.

Tapi Carpets & Floors has bought the Carpetright brand name, the company's intellectual property, two warehouses and 54 stores, saving 308 jobs.

However, the brand's stores at Kittybrewster and Bridge of Don in Aberdeen are among the 218 stores not included in the deal, and staff will be made redundant either immediately or over the coming weeks.

Jeevan Karir, managing director of Tapi, said that initially it had wanted to save Carpetright in its entirety but it "quickly established" that doing so was "unviable".

He said that while the deal will save more than 300 jobs, hundreds more workers at Carpetright's head office in Purfleet, Essex and across some shops, will only be kept on for a short time to wind down operations.

Carpetright employed more than 1,800 staff before entering into insolvency. It also had 273 shops across the country.

More than a week ago it emerged that Carpetright was close to collapse and was set to appoint PwC as an administrator while it scrambled to find extra funding.

In a statement on Monday, PwC said that administrators were working with affected employees to ensure they receive the payments they are entitled to as soon as possible.

Zelf Jussain, joint administrator at PwC, acknowledged it was a "difficult time" for those affected.

"The sale of some stores and the brand to Tapi has allowed over 300 jobs to be saved, and gives the Carpetright brand the chance to continue and flourish under its new ownership," he said.

“However, it is deeply saddening that for the remainder of the workforce there will be redundancies. We are committed to helping those affected and will make sure redundancy claims are processed as quickly as possible."

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