FreshXpress
FreshXpress was a discount supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. It was originally formed in 2007, from the rump of the defunct Kwik Save chain, by Irish retail entrepreneur Brendan Murtagh.
It existed in its original form between July 2007 and March 2008, culminating in it going into administration. It was then resurrected in a smaller form, however, during 2009, the resurrected company also went into administration. It has since ceased to exist.
History
From the remains of Kwik Save
In February 2007, Brendan Murtagh and his son Alan Murtagh, major shareholders in the County Cavan-based Kingspan building materials group, backed 70% of a £50 million rescue plan for Kwik Save, with the Kwik Save managing director, Paul Niklas, covering the remaining 30%.Murtagh's son Alan Murtagh had already been a director of the business before he got involved.
A new beginning
FreshXpress Retail Limited first had 56 stores, all of which were formerly Kwik Save stores before the chain went bankrupt. On 6 July 2007, 56 stores stayed open, forming FreshXpress in an £18m deal, saving around six hundred jobs. The FreshXpress stores officially opened on 21 July 2007.Prodo and The Think Tank assisted with the creation of the new brand. In the middle of September 2007, due to poor trading results, this portfolio of stores was reduced from 56 to just 23 better-performing stores, the closed stores were sold in chunks to Tesco, Sainsbury's, and The Co-op. Many of the stores were leased from the Somerfield group, and have since been leased to other retailers