Wrapit Protest - Brides March in London
Angry brides and grooms marched through London yesterday in protests against the collapes of the online marriage gift service, Wrapit, earlier in the week.
The group consisted of newlyweds who will now not be receiving any of their wedding presents their family and friends had already paid for. Eight of the brides were dressed in their full wedding outfits.
The ‘wedding party’ handed in a petition to the HSBC bank at Canary Wharf with detailed requests for the bank to arrange delivery of the Wrapit wedding gifts.
Wrapit has laid ‘blame’ for its collaspe at the feet of HSBC since the bank withheld its credit and debit card income and after the petition was handed to HSBC a spokesperson said that the bank would review its options regarding Wrapit.
Wrapit Facebook Group Started
Protesting bride Abby Parkes and her husband have lost their wedding gifts to the value of £4,500 and she said “That amount is just typical of the people I have met today. It is appalling – which is why we have come here today to ask HSBC, the only organisation which can help – to help”.
A Facebook group againts Wrapit has been set up my another unsatisfied bride, Amy Hinchcliffe, who was married last September and endured many problems with Wrapit. It took Amy and her husband right up to this June to received the last of her wedding gifts. This was only after the massive amount complaints on their part, otherwise she feels they would have been in the same mess as many other newlyweds are now. She believes HSBC is not to blame and feels Wrapit is wrong for laying the blame on the bank’s doorstep.
“Wrapit is wholly responsible for getting themselves in this mess – why should they expect HSBC to bail them out?” she said.
Five Million Pounds Worth of Wrapit Wedding Gifts – Gone
Since the company has gone into administration it is believed over two thousand couples that had wedding list with Wrapit stand to lose everything that was purchased for them. The figure is expected to be in the £5 million pounds mark.
Family and friends who purchased wedding gifts over a value of £100 while using a credit card will be able to claim the money back, but up to 20,000 others who paid with debit cards will have to join the list of long line of creditors.
Now at the start of the young newlyweds’ life they are having to contact their wedding guests to explain that the gift they purchased for them will not be delivered and give them advice on how to reclaim their money.
Wrapit Email Was Sent to Couples
eight year old company, Wrapit, used to handle between 2,500 and 3,500 weddings a year. Each wedding list would have been in the region of £2,800.
The company advised future brides and grooms “there is one time in your life when you just have to grit your teeth and get down to some serious receiving”.
To matter worse, couples were given the devastating news over an email that was sent by Wrapit’s Managing Director Peter Gelardi.
Couples are now being advised by Trading Standards Institute to formally register as a creditor of the company as soon as possible.
One hundred members of staff from the 15 showrooms across the UK have lost their jobs.
