Totally Workwear closes four franchise stores around Sydney, with doors locked and staff let go

Four franchise outlets of a popular retail chain offering uniforms, clothes and work boots for tradies have collapsed with landlords locking up the stores and staff left in the lurch.

The Totally Workwear branches in Hoxton Park, Narellan, Eastern Creek and North Parramatta, in Sydney's west and south-west, have ceased trading.

Eviction notices have been stuck to the doors while staff members have claimed they knew something was wrong months ago.

Some have claimed they're owed final wages along with superannuation.

Staff at the Hoxton Park franchise received an email in April telling them they were out of a job.

'As you all know, we have encountered immense and considerable financial issues which have now caused us to cease trading,' the email read, news.com.au reported.

'As a result, we need to stand down all employees. We do take into consideration, that there has been a pay cycle not met.

'We are currently dealing with administrators and liquidators, and are in the process of selling our businesses.'

The impacted stores have not yet entered administration. 

One worker, who chose not to be named, said she noticed stock wasn't being replenished in September last year.

'I turned up to work in February and there was a lockout notice on the door. The boss said 'have the day off',' she said.

She said she and other staff had access to some of the franchisee's financial figures and she could see things were 'going bad'.

The worker claimed that when the businesses started to suffer, a couple who'd just started a cleaning business placed a $7,000 order for uniforms.

'I can't take $7,000 off you, I didn't think they were going to get anything for it. Then I thought if I don't take that money, then none of us will get paid. Morally I thought I was doing something wrong,' she said.

The staff member said it was 'very disheartening' for such a well-known business to cease trading, and speculated Totally Workwear's head office knew about the downfall of the four stores.

The impacted franchises are owned by Brett Sargent and his wife Elizabeth.

Totally Workwear has 90 stores across Australia.

The company describes itself as 'an iconic brand that stocks, supplies and sells iconic workwear, footwear, and safety brands'.

'Humble, hard-working, and honest is who we are, operating always with integrity and a culture centred on creating authentic customer connections through community,' their website reads.

'We hold the consumer experience across our retail network, at the core of our culture. It is our commitment to consistency across the consumer journey that underpins our market leading retail relevance.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the head office for comment.