What happened this week?
Hold onto your hats but there are less than six weeks to Christmas.
We don’t know how that happened either but it’s true. The busiest retail and hospitality season of the year is upon us and for many businesses it’s going to be all hands on deck from now until 2025.
But before you dive into your own schedule, or realise in a panic you haven’t begun any shopping yet, take a breath and catch up on the important and interesting business and insolvency news stories you might have missed from this week.
So if you want to know why water and energy bills will continue to bite SMEs despite anything announced in the Budget; everything you need to know about Time To Pay Arrangements and marking 140 years of the Official Receivers’ office – you can read all these stories and more at our advice centre page.
Homebase
One of the UK’s largest home and garden supply firms has gone into administration.
Homebase has over 100 stores all over the country and employs more than 3,000 people.
Hilco, who own the chain, had been looking to sell the retailer but hadn’t managed to find an outright buyer. They have sold 70 stores and the Homebase brand as part of a pre-pack administration deal to The Range retail chain which safeguards their immediate future.
This leaves the remaining 49 stores and thousands of jobs under threat. They will continue to trade while a buyer is sought and no immediate redundancies will be made.
Homebase’s chief executive Damian McGloughlin admitted staff would find the news “unsettling”. He said that the past three years had been “incredibly challenging” for DIY stores and there had been a decline in consumer confidence and spending following the pandemic. In addition they had to contend with “persistent high inflation, global supply chain issues and unseasonable weather.”
He said that the business had restructured and sought investment but “these efforts have not been successful” and that this was a very difficult and uncertain time for all involved.
Hilco acquired Homebase in 2018 from Australian firm Wesfarmers. The business has struggled as consumers have cut back discretionary spending during the cost-of-living crisis and saw a £84.2 million loss last year.
ADG
An award-winning Plymouth architecture practice which designed some of the city’s most famous buildings over the past 40 years has ceased trading and gone into administration with the loss of ten positions.
ADG were founded in 1985 and were responsible for City College Plymouth#s STEM Centre, the Azure apartment block on Plymouth Hoe, the Peninsula Dental School and Plymouth Fish Market among many others.
A statement from the business said: “The current directors took over the practice in April 2020 when the country was battling the Covid pandemic and businesses were having to adapt to new ways of working.
“We adjusted to this but now face a reduction in our predicted workload due to projects being put on hold and other projects coming to an end.
“This, combined with rising business costs and increased regulation, means that the company is no longer financially viable, and we have had to make the difficult decision to cease trading and appoint liquidators.”
Hario Trading Co and Sayhi International Co
Two companies selling women’s clothing online in the UK from a warehouse in China have been shut down by the High Court after concerns they were selling sub-standard goods to the public.
Investigators from the Insolvency Service were concerned the companies were not providing refunds to customers for these poor quality items and in several cases, not providing goods at all.
Neither company was to be found operating from the UK despite having registered offices in Nottingham and Cambridge and accountants in London.
Cheryl Lambert, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Both companies gave their customers a false sense of security; they were operating from the UK and subject to our rules and regulations. In reality they had no presence at their registered offices and were harming the UK’s reputation as a safe place to do business.
“Our investigations concluded that both companies could be used as vehicles for fraud in the future and customers may suffer further financial losses, which is why the Secretary of State applied to have them wound-up in the public interest.”
Troy Central
A Suffolk refurbishment contractor specialising in the hotel, leisure and commercial sectors has gone into administration, placing 24 positions in doubt.
Troy Central are based in Bury St Edmonds but also have offices in London and have made the decision despite recently posting record revenues.
In a released statement the management team highlighted the “wider uncertainties” in the construction industry as the basis for their decision. This included “inflation, a competitive market and some challenging contracts meaning margins have been put under pressure and decreased in prior years”.
The construction sector is facing a number of headwinds from the post-pandemic recovery to economic uncertainty and supply chain disruptions both at home and abroad. There are encouraging signs given the new government’s announced plans to boost infrastructure spending and build millions of new homes but these will take time to come on stream.
Vitrine Systems
A structural glazing specialist based in Surrey has gone into administration as a direct result of their main client, ISG, also entering insolvency.
Vitrine Systems were founded in 1995 and designed, fabricated, installed and maintained glazing products for the construction and building management markets. They employed 23 workers, who have since been made redundant.
They worked significantly with ISG which resulted in a large bad debt which immediately negatively affected the viability of the company as well as future projects and their pipeline of work.
As a consequence, the company was unable to continue to trade and entered administration.
A statement issued by directors said: “It is deeply regrettable that Vitrine Systems has been forced to cease trading due to a series of challenging circumstances.
“This was a sad ending for a well-established company. The job of administrators is now to provide immediate support to those whose jobs have been affected whilst seeking to obtain maximum value for the company’s creditors.”
Eslington Villa
A Gateshead hotel and restaurant that hosts weddings is seeking a buyer after going into administration.
Eslington Villa has 18 bedrooms and will continue to operate through the process.
A statement from the agents said: “It’s been a challenging few years for hospitality, there’s no getting away from that but this is a business with a lot of potential.
“We’re hopeful of finding a way forward for Eslington Villa and exploring options for a buyer at the moment.”
This won’t be your last chance to take a breath and consider some professional advice on how you can make the best of the rest of the year – but it is your best one.
Get in touch with us to arrange a free initial consultation and depending on your goals, you can begin to work towards achieving them before the first decorations go up.