Contracts had not been costed properly and the accounting system was non existent. The company was leaking money and when we scratched the surface it was clear that large debts had built up.
Case Study 2 – Builder
Location: Kent
Turnover: £1,200,000
Debts: Builders Merchants (Primarily)
The downturn in the housing market saw a major change in fortunes for this company. Contracts disappeared and existing projects were scaled back. Having taken on employees and bought additional equipment during the housing boom this left the business in an impossible situation.
It reached the point where staff could not be paid and redundancy payments were not available. With suppliers also threatening legal action there was no alternative but to liquidate the firm.
The Liquidator was able to ensure the process went smoothly and that the assets were sold for market value. The Liquidators were also able to pay a small dividend to creditors. The Directors purchased the trading name of the Company after putting forward the best offer and decided to start a new Company after complying with the relevant restrictions around reusing a liquidated company name.
Liquidation may not be as bad as you think and allowed the directors of this business to move on and plan for the future.