Hopefully a wet start to November hasn’t dampened down the enthusiasm of directors and business owners to have a strong finish to the year with the busy festive season yet to come.
Before you get too deeply into decorating the office and getting everything ready for possibly the busiest eight weeks of the year, take a moment to catch up on all the important insolvency and business news stories from the past seven days.
So whether you want to know how charities are handling the economic side effects of long Covid; why last month’s inflation figures mean real delayed consequences next year for nearly all businesses and finding out the most frequently asked questions and answers about administrations – you can find them all here and more!
Safestyle UK
One of the UK’s largest windows and doors manufacturers has gone into administration with 600 positions at risk of redundancy.
Safestyle UK is headquartered in Bradford and has a factory in Barnsley growing to 40 branches across the country since its founding in 1992.
Workers were texted a statement from CEO Rob Neale which said: “I promised to update you all as soon as I had more news to share.
“I regret to inform you that our discussions have been unsuccessful and that all parties have now withdrawn their respective interest in purchasing the business. The board has therefore concluded that it is no longer able to continue trading as a going concern and has filed notice of intention to appoint administrators.
“Between now and further meetings we cannot continue to work and I must tell you to safely down tools with immediate effect and go home/not attend work.
“This is not what any of us wanted and is the one that we have all worked hard to avoid.”
James Villas
A Maidstone based holiday rental business has closed with immediate effect.
James Villas offered 600 guaranteed villas across Europe but its parent company Awaze announced that it would cease taking bookings immediately with 40 positions at risk of redundancy.
A statement from Awaze CEO Henrik Kjellberg said: “Our focus at Awaze is to sell holiday homes that we manage exclusively on behalf of our owners.
“With our integration plans behind a common platform far advanced for our combined European inventory, we have decided to cease trading with James Villas as that model relied on guaranteed inventory.
“James Villas core inventory represents less than one percent of our total supply. We will work hard to ensure we minimise the impact on our employees, suppliers and customers. We remain committed to keep growing our supply base behind a model that is flexible and winning in the marketplace.”
Mitchell Dryers
A Cumbrian business that has been supplying industrial dryers to the food, chemical, mineral and pharmaceutical industries for over 100 years has gone into voluntary liquidation.
Mitchell Dryers had exported products to over 100 countries and recently signed a sponsorship deal with Carlisle United.
A statement from the directors of the company confirmed the procedure would take place.
Luxtripper
A luxury travel organiser has gone into administration and shut down operations with immediate effect with the loss of 60 positions.
Luxtripper had tried to secure additional funds or find a buyer for the business through a merger and acquisitions process but were unsuccessful.
Established in 2015, Luxtripper introduced innovative technology designed to simplify luxury travel planning for busy consumers. The business saw substantial growth and an expanding customer base, it faced challenging business conditions in recent times leading to overwhelming financial hurdles.
A statement from Nena Chaletzos, founder and CEO of Luxtripper, expressed her sorrow stating: “We are devastated to announce this news. The team has worked tirelessly to find a sustainable solution for our business but it is with heavy hearts that we’ve had to choose this option as the only path forward.”
Wiggle Chain Reaction
Cycling retailer Wiggle Chain Reaction has announced it is up for sale after entering administration following a financial crisis at its parent company.
At the start of September the company announced a pre-tax loss of £97 million for 2022 and its parent company Signa Sports United (SSU) delisted its shares and announced it was undergoing “severe liquidity and profitability challenges”.
Alpamare Water Park
Benchmark Leisure, the developer of the popular Alpamare outdoor water park in Scarborough has gone into administration.
The business confirmed the facility would be closed with a plan to reopen in Spring 2024. Directors have confirmed that the situation is complex with several different options including a whole sale of the facility still under consideration.
There are calls for the local North Yorkshire Council to become more involved as they are among the largest creditors for the business having lent Benchmark £7.8 million in recent years.
A spokesperson for the council said: “We have been notified and will be liaising with administrators and considering all options available to us at this time with a view to minimising the impact on us and the Scarborough area.”
Real Brewing Pub Co
The futures of several Derbyshire pubs are in doubt as their operating company has gone into administration.
The Real Brewing Pub Co ran The Greyhound and the Derby Brewing Tap House in Derby with several more properties across the county. Both of these freehold properties will be sold with the rest closed for the time being.
A spokesperson for the business said: “It has been an extremely challenging trading environment over the last couple of years, including the pandemic, increased loan burdens on the back of this, ongoing recruitment challenges, soaring interest rates, supplier cost increases, the cost of living crisis resulting in reduced trade and huge increases in the cost base with uncapped energy contracts.
“In spite of these challenges, we had a plan in place to continue to steer through this however the business has HMRC arrears predominantly from the pandemic. This debt was demanded to be paid back within a short period, which meant that we could no longer continue to trade.”
Thessco
A Sheffield based metal alloy manufacturer has gone into administration and ceased trading.
Thessco could trace its history back to 1760 and was one of the largest manufacturers of metal joining products, silver brazing alloys and industrial silver alloys in the world employing 47 staff whose positions would now be made redundant.
Directors attribute the closure to a range of factors that arose “following a year of turbulent market forces” including soaring energy prices, a significant increase in finance costs and rising raw materials prices.
Manchester Cares
A loneliness charity for the young and elderly in Manchester has announced its immediate closure due to insolvency.
Manchester Cares was “a community network of young professionals and older neighbours hanging out and helping one another in a rapidly changing city.”
A statement was issued that read: “The Board of Trustees is deeply sad to share that The Cares Family charities will cease operating immediately, due to insolvency.
“We know this news is sudden and will come as a shock. We’re fiercely proud of the work of our charities in tackling loneliness and isolation across London, Manchester and Liverpool, and in supporting others across the UK to make a similar difference in their own communities.
“The sad reality is that, like many charities, we’re in a desperately difficult fundraising environment. While support for tackling isolation increased during the pandemic, in the current economic climate this has fallen away significantly with many pressing issues competing for the limited support available.”
Cash4UNow
A Leeds based loan business has appointed administrators this week. .
Novaloans operating as Cash4UNow have confirmed through the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that the firm is no longer lending but all existing loan agreements will remain in place and should continue to be serviced by borrowers.
A statement from the FCA said: “The firm’s administration doesn’t change the payment terms and conditions of customers’ loans, these are the same as when the loan was taken out with the firm subject to the same regulatory rules and requirements it did before its administration.
“Customers are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) as consumer credit lenders aren’t covered by the scheme. Failure to maintain repayments could affect their credit records.”
Novaloans was founded in Seacroft in 2011 and employed 38 people who were made redundant as a result of the process.
We’re now in the final quarter of the year and while we hope that everything comes together to be the perfect end to the year for your business – it might not be everything you want it to be.
No matter what happens between now and the start of 2024, you can begin to make some positive and effective changes to strengthen your business right now.
Get in touch with us to arrange a free consultation with one of our team of advisors.
Once you arrange a convenient appointment they’ll be able to explain all the options available to you and how you can implement them most efficiently.
What they can advise depends entirely on your own unique circumstances but the universal factor remains that the sooner you get in touch, the sooner you can make a positive change for you and your business.