How are those tariffs working out for you?

QVC Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last Thursday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. In a press release issued early Thursday evening, QVC Group announced it had entered into a prepackaged restructuring agreement with a majority of its debtors.

QVC Group is buckling under the weight of $6.6 billion of debt as of the end of 2025.

“We cannot assure that cash on hand, cash flow from operations will be sufficient to continue to fund our operations and allow us to satisfy our obligations related to the Chapter 11 cases until we are able to emerge from the Chapter 11 cases,” the company said in the report.

Yet in a letter to vendors issued around the same time David Rawlinson, President & CEO stated: “We fully expect to pay our vendors and suppliers in full under normal terms for goods received and services provided before and after the filing date. You should continue to submit invoices through your usual accounts-payable channels”. 

How do vendors reconcile these conflicting statements?

I think it is high time that ‘pre-packaged’ restructuring measures need to be looked at carefully by the relevant authorities, because inevitably it will be the vendors and staff who lose out when these things are finally presented.

As an aside, the blame for QVC’s downfall can be firmly laid on Trump’s doormat. One of the major reasons stated in their report said:

“Economic tensions and changes and uncertainty relating to international trade policies, including, for example, the recent widespread tariffs announced by the U.S. on its major trading partners, higher tariffs on imported goods and materials, actions taken in response (such as retaliatory tariffs or other trade protectionist measures or the renegotiation of free trade agreements), have increased inflationary cost pressures and recessionary fears.”