OPERATORS of the Phones4u Arena, SMG Europe, have insisted that there will be no effect on upcoming shows at the concert venue, despite the mobile phone retailer's collapse.
"We would like to reassure concert-goers that the future of the mobile phone retailer Phones 4u will have no impact on forthcoming shows."
Phones 4u announced on Monday 15 September that 550 stores would close and that administrators had been called in - putting 5,596 jobs at risk.
Some concert-goers have expressed concern via social media that this announcement would put upcoming events at Manchester's Phones4u Arena in jeopardy.
Kylie Minogue, Lee Evans, Lady Gaga, Il Divo, Ed Sheeran and Paolo Nutini are all scheduled to play the arena over the coming months.
Kylie will still play the arena this month
However, venue managers and operators, SMG Europe, have moved to assure customers that events at the arena would not be affected by the retailers demise.
Confidential received this short statement from SMG Europe:
"We would like to reassure concert-goers that the future of the mobile phone retailer Phones 4u will have no impact on forthcoming shows.
"The arena will continue to be managed and operated by SMG Europe, as it has very successfully for the last 20 years.
"Our name will remain Phones 4u Arena for the foreseeable future."
Good news for arena customers at least. Less so for all those who have paid the retailer up to £789 for the newly announced iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Phones4u, which recorded an underlying profit of £105m on over £1bn in turnover in 2013, blamed their collapse on the withdrawal of network operators Vodafone and EE.
