Pittards sell Leeds facility

Pittards has agreed to sell its loss-making factory in Leeds for £6.5 million. The 180-year-old company secured the sale after announcing plans to close the site with the loss of 300 jobs last Christmas. The closure was blamed on high running costs and disappointing sales. The company said it would stay at the site until December, when operations will be transferred to their main base in Yeovil and a sub-contractor in Taiwan. In a statement to the stock exchange, Pittards said the proceeds from the sale would be used to reduce borrowings across the group. In 2005, Pittards, which has run the site in Leeds since the 1970s and also has operations in Ethiopia, made operating losses of £2.5m.