Sports retailer and gym chain, DW Sports, is set to go into administration, putting 1,700 jobs at risk.

The company, which operates a gym and sports shop in Cheltenham, as well as a large store at St Oswalds in Gloucester, operated 73 gyms and 75 stores across the UK, as reported by the BBC.

All of its stores will close, but DW aims to work with administrators to save as many gyms as possible.

The closure of both its shops and gyms during lockdown left DW with high fixed costs and no income. The company said the decision to go into administration gives it the best possible chance of protecting viable parts of the business and returning them to profitability, while protecting as many jobs as possible.

The company has already closed 25 of its stores, with the remainder moving into closing down sales with immediate effect. The DW Sports website will stop trading immediately.

The company said 59 of its gyms in England and Northern Ireland have reopened, with the remainder closed in localised lockdown areas.

Fitness First, which is part of the same group of companies, will not be affected.

Punchline says: "This is really sad news for the hard working staff, but also bad news for Gloucester City Council, which bought the site for £54 million at the end of last year, along with Kings Walk and Eastgate shopping centres. The timing couldn't have been much worse and DW may not be the only tenant forced to close up and leave the site as a result of the coronavirus crisis."

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