ICSM Print Industry Insolvency News: TJ Books’ creditors left with £3m headache in Print Week report
By Harry Mottram: The new year hasn’t seen a let up in the problems for the printing industry as more firms go to the wall leaving creditors millions of pounds out of pocket. The printing and allied trades’ publication Print Week has charter a shocking trail of debt threatening the survival of some of those suppliers who have done business with a string of high-profile companies.
Jo Francis of the publication has reported on the £3m shortfall left by the collapse of TJ Books in Cornwall. The journalist reported that the Padstow printer and publisher had become insolvent after its, ‘disastrous pre-pack acquisition of the H Charlesworth & Co business, leaving an estimated shortfall of more than £5m before being rescued by Clays.’
In her story on the shocking level of debt left for the creditors to pick up she revealed that the administrators James Saunders of KR8 Advisory and Gareth Wilcox of Opus Restructuring the firm had desperately looked for cash to fund the Charlesworth acquisition, but it wasn’t enough as the company struggled to survive.
ICSM has previously reported on a failed a pre-pack in February as the firm teetered on the brink of collapse. On February 21st, reported Print Week, “Clays paid £191,000 for TJ assets including its goodwill and name, contracts, stock and work in progress, fixtures and fittings. Separately, the Bungay book printing giant paid £2.6m to Close Brothers Asset Finance and Compass Business Finance for assets that were subject to finance agreements. Clays acquired the Padstow book printer via Clays 123 Ltd, now renamed TJ Clays. The TJ Books estimated deficiency of just over £5m includes £3m owed to trade and expense creditors, nearly £300,000 owed to HMRC, and £187,500 to Lloyds Bank for a CBILS loan.”
Ian Carrotte of ICSM said this was a staggeringly high amount of debt which the tax payer, the banks and trade creditors will have to cover. He said: “We were aware of the problems facing members of ICSM in securing payment, but the administrators have exposed the firm’s liabilities which even if the CEO had won the National Lottery it still wouldn’t have covered the debts. The golden rule for suppliers is never to allow clients to extend payment terms as it is a sure sign they have a problem, and it is the suppliers who end up with a bigger cash flow problem.”
In her report Jo Francis gave this depressing conclusion: “The joint administrators said that, based on current information, it was unlikely there will be sufficient realisations to enable a dividend to be paid to preferential, secondary preferential, or unsecured creditors.”
See https://www.printweek.com/news/ for more.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ICSM CREDIT
For information on ICSM visit www.icsmcredit.com or call 0844 854 1850.
ICSM, The Exchange, Express Park, Bristol Road, Bridgwater, Somerset TA6 4RR. Tel: 0844 854 1850. www.icsmcredit.com. Ian.carrotte@icsmcredit.com