Former staff at CNG Group look set to receive £43,200 in claims against the failed Harrogate firm.
CNG, which employed about 145 staff, blamed spiralling wholesale gas and electricity prices for going out of business in 2021.
Administrators Interpath Advisory has published a progress report, which was uploaded on the Companies House website this week, for the period from September 2 last year to March 1.
It said staff — classed as ordinary preferential claimants — claimed £43,200 for arrears of wages up to a maximum of £800 a week, accrued holiday pay and pension benefits.
The report by joint administrators Timothy Bateson and Christopher Pole added:
“We anticipate that ordinary preferential creditors should receive a dividend of 100p in the £.”
Administrators paid £635 an hour
The report also revealed Interpath is being paid £635 an hour for handling the administration. It said:
“We have incurred time costs of £153,269. These represent 241 hours at an average rate of £635 per hour.”
Interpath’s final fee by the time administration is due to end on March 1 next year is expected to be £298,759.
Preferential creditors are expected to be paid in full, the report said, and “it is likely that the unsecured creditors will receive a dividend” although the amount is unknown.
The timing of payments is also unclear.
The report described the company’s primary assets as “inter-company debtor balances and investments in others groups”.
These are expected to generate “significant realisations” but the administrators added:
“The flow of funds between the CNG group of companies is complex and will depend on each company within the group resolving matters which are currently preventing distributions being made to the company.”
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Assets to be sold at failed Ripon firm Farmison
Administrators running collapsed Ripon firm Farmison & Co said today it planned to begin the sale of assets.
FRP took charge of the company on Thursday, when it ceased trading and most staff lost their jobs.
Farmison co-founder John Pallagi held talks over the bank holiday with a consortium led by two Yorkshire businessmen about reviving the business.
But there has been no news of a deal since and FRP has now issued a statement clarifying the situation.
The statement outlined the problems that brought down the award-winning company. It said:
“The business recently underwent a fundraising process to secure external investment to support its business plan but did not secure a sufficient level of interest.
“Following a period of significant operational investment, the business has not generated the required level of revenues to sustain its high cost base.
“In recent weeks interest in the business and assets has been explored but a transaction could not be completed, and the directors have therefore placed the company into administration.”
The statement confirmed Farmison had ceased trading, adding:
“Regrettably, the majority of its 75 roles were made redundant. A skeleton staff has been retained to support the joint administrators in fulfilling their duties as they move towards an asset sale, notably the brand, goodwill and intellectual property.”
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Arvindar Jit Singh, partner at FRP and joint administrator of Farmison, said:
“Farmison had made significant investment in recent years in its operations as it aimed to carve out a differentiated brand and offering in the online retail space.
“However, it proved too heavy a burden to sustain without the uplift in sales that it had expected.
“Without a major capital injection, the business could not continue trading and we must now commence an asset sale. We encourage any interested parties to come forward.
“In the meantime, we have a specialist team working with impacted staff to access support through the Redundancy Payments Service.”
Customers and creditors can contact the administrators by emailing farmison@frpadvisory.com.
‘Intense’ talks to save Ripon firm Farmison after buyout collapsesIntense negotiations are taking place over the bank holiday weekend to save one of Ripon’s largest employers .
Premium meat retailer Farmison & Co ceased trading on Thursday and entered administration. Most of the 92 staff were made redundant.
All items on the company’s website are currently listed as ‘out of stock’.
Farmison co-founder John Pallagi told the Stray Ferret he was talking to a consortium led by two Yorkshire businessmen about a management buyout.
It comes after buyout talks with another online butcher, Tom Hixson of Smithfield, fell through.
Mr Pallagi said:
“I hope to have some news by the end of the long weekend.
“Farmison isn’t trading at the moment but I haven’t given up hope. We are an amazing business and this is a great opportunity.
“We have half a million people on our database and an established UK brand that has won many awards. There’s every reason to keep this company alive.”
Mr Pallagi said last night he had been engaged in 48 hours of exhausting talks with the potential new owners after administrators FRP took control of the company on Maundy Thursday.
He said the firm had serviced all orders that had been placed and a “small working team” remained on site to deal with any unresolved issues.
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Last year Mr Pallagi sold Farmison, whose customers include Harrods and Fortnum & Mason, to Scottish private investors Inverleith LLP.
He remained as chief executive and a new three-year business plan was agreed. But when the plan faltered he approached Ripon and Skipton Conservative MP Julian Smith and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for help.
Mr Pallagi said:
“I’m a fighter. I’ve been in this business for 21 years and I’m confident we can turn around this wrong turn that we’ve taken.”
Mr Pallagi started Farmison to work with local farmers and encourage people to ‘eat better meat’.
Despite sales doubling to £12m in 2021, the company then made a loss of £2.6m.
Paperchase in Harrogate to close tomorrow
Paperchase in Harrogate will close tomorrow after the company went into administration last month.
The cards, gifts and stationery company has been holding a closing down sale since administrators Begbies Traynor took control of the business.
The James Street shop has already sealed off half of the unit as stocks run low. It is running a 70% off sale and selling some cards for as little as 10p.
Tesco bought the rights to the cards, gifts and stationery brand, entitling it to sell Paperchase items in its supermarkets, but did not buy the stores.
The move affected 106 Paperchase shops and more than 800 staff nationally. All stores are due to cease trading by Monday.
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Collapsed Harrogate firm Amvoc set to enter administration
An insolvency firm has been appointed to handle the process of placing failed Harrogate firm Amvoc into administration.
Staff at the telemarketing firm were left shocked on Tuesday night when they received a late night email from chief executive Damian Brockway saying “all our offices are closed with effect from tonight”. It went on to blame “covid debts”.
Law firm Aticus Law has now been contacted by 145 former employees as it investigates the circumstances of the company’s collapse and concerns around how the redundancy process was managed, as well as whether ex-staff are eligible to claim for compensation.
Gareth Lewis, director of Leeds firm Lewis Business Recovery and Insolvency, said today it was handling the administration process.
He said:
“I can confirm that following the directors’ decision to make all employees redundant on Tuesday evening, this firm was engaged on Wednesday to assist with the process of placing the company into administration.
“It is anticipated that the company will be placed into administration in the coming days, and we are now collating all financial and employee information to enable us to perform our duties.
“We have contacted former employees through our agents IPERA, who will assist employees with the process of making their claims through the government’s Redundancy Payments Service”.
Founded in Dacre
Mr Brockway set up Amvoc, the trading name of A Marketing Vocation Ltd, from a small office in Dacre in 2010. It sold telemarketing services, initially in the legal sector, and grew rapidly, moving first to Pateley Bridge and then to large offices at New York Mills near Summerbridge.
It opened a new head office on Cardale Park in Harrogate in 2015, a facility in Leeds in 2018 and an office in Manchester in 2022. It also had plans to expand to London.
Amvoc’s clients included BP, Barclays, Virgin Media, Leeds Beckett University, and both the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties.
Its website said it employed 450 staff but the Stray Ferret believes the figure at the time the company collapsed was under 300.
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We again attempted to contact Mr Brockway today. An immediate emailed response said:
“I regret to inform you that Amvoc has been forced to cease trading with immediate effect due to financial difficulties.
“We understand that this news may come as a shock to many of you, and we want to assure you that we are doing everything possible to manage the situation.
“We are in the process of contacting all our staff, clients and partners to inform them of the situation and provide any necessary information. We apologise for any inconvenience or disruption this may cause, and we are committed to minimising the impact on our stakeholders as much as possible.”
Almost 100 staff at failed Harrogate telemarketing company Amvoc are to take legal action over the way redundancies were managed.
The Stray Ferret revealed yesterday up to 450 people received an email at about 10pm on Tuesday night from chief executive Damian Brockway informing them the firm had ceased with immediate effect.
Mr Brockway said the company had entered administration and blamed “covid debts”.
Based at Cardale Park in Harrogate, Amvoc also has offices in Leeds and Manchester.
Within hours of the news breaking, employment law firm Aticus Law said it had been contacted by 91 people affected.
The firm said it was now in the early stages of investigating the circumstances of the company’s collapse and concerns around how the redundancy process was managed.
It was also looking into whether ex-employees were eligible to claim for a protective award claim against the company.
Aticus said if its clients were able to successfully pursue a claim, those involved would receive up to eight weeks’ worth of pay in compensation, with a cap of £571 per week.
The Manchester-based firm is currently representing over 130 ex-employees to bring a protective award claim against Made.com which entered into administration last year, around a dozen former employees of FlyBe, and more than 50 staff who lost their jobs when BritishVolt collapsed earlier this year.
Edward Judge, a founding partner at Aticus Law said:
“We have now been contacted by 91 individuals who say that they have been affected by job losses following the recent collapse of Amvoc.
“We are in the early stages of investigating those claims, and advising our clients on their options.”
“As is always the case with protective award claims, the individuals who have reached out to us for advice regarding their rights are understandably very anxious and concerned about what the future has in store for them.”
A protective award is compensation awarded by an employment tribunal if an employer fails in its duties.
Mr Judge added:
“The protective award is a vital safety net for so many families in fast-paced redundancy situations that often leave them with no source of income and absolutely no notice.
“However, many people don’t realise that you can only get a protective award payment if you are included as part of the claim and are listed as part of the Schedule of Claimants attached to the tribunal judgment.”
Read more:
Mr Brockway’s email to staff, seen by the Stray Ferret, said:
“We have appointed administrators with immediate effect who will now be responsible for paying wages this week and all outstanding bonuses.
“I am gutted. Words fail me.
“Unfortunately our covid debts were too high and repayments not high enough. We have been issued with immediate request to pay all outstanding within seven days which is impossible.
“I cannot tell you how upset this makes me.”
Hundreds of job losses as Harrogate company goes under
As many as 450 people have lost their jobs after Harrogate telemarketing company Amvoc crashed into administration, leaving employees in shock today.
Staff received an email at 10pm last night from chief executive Damian Brockway informing them all the company’s offices, in Harrogate, Leeds and Manchester, would close with immediate effect, citing “covid debts” as the cause.
The email, seen by the Stray Ferret, said:
“We have appointed administrators with immediate effect who will now be responsible for paying wages this week and all outstanding bonuses.
“I am gutted. Words fail me.
“Unfortunately our covid debts were too high and repayments not high enough. We have been issued with immediate request to pay all outstanding within seven days which is impossible.
“I cannot tell you how upset this makes me.”
The speed of the company’s demise surprised many – it was still advertising for new staff as recently as last week – and staff expressed their shock in social media posts. One said:
“I, as many others will be during this time, am now frantically looking for work. With huge overheads, a small child to support and a mortgage to pay, I am very concerned about the coming weeks.”
Mr Brockway set up Amvoc, the trading name of A Marketing Vocation Ltd, from a small office in Dacre in 2010. It sold telemarketing services, initially in the legal sector, and grew rapidly, moving first to Pateley Bridge and then to large offices at New York Mills near Summerbridge.
It opened a new head office on Cardale Park in Harrogate in 2015, a facility in Leeds in 2018 and an office in Manchester in 2022. It also had plans to expand to London.
Amvoc’s clients have included BP, Barclays, Virgin Media, Leeds Beckett University, and both the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties.
The company has been approached for comment.
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Paperchase in Harrogate to close
Paperchase in Harrogate is holding a closing down sale after the company went into administration this week.
Tesco bought the rights to the cards, gifts and stationery brand, entitling it to sell Paperchase items in its supermarkets, but did not buy the stores.
It means the shop on James Street is one of 106 stores facing uncertain futures. More than 800 staff nationally are affected.
Signs have now gone up in the window confirming the closure, although the final day of trading is not yet known.
In-store notices confirm administrators Begbies Traynor have been running the business since Tuesday.
They say no further gift cards will be sold and customers have until 5pm on February 14 to use existing gift cards.
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Paperchase in Harrogate faces uncertain future as company goes into administration
Staff at the Harrogate branch of stationery store Paperchase face an uncertain future after the company went into administration today.
Sky News reported this morning Tesco was in advanced talks to buy Paperchase’s name and other intellectual property through a pre-pack administration but was unlikely to be interested in any stores — casting doubt over the workforce’s future.
Later, administrators Begbies Traynor said in a statement:
“On January 21, Mark Fry, Kirstie Provan and Gary Shankland, of Begbies Traynor, were appointed as joint administrators of Aspen Phoenix Newco Limited, which trades as Paperchase.
“Unfortunately, despite a comprehensive sales process, no viable offers were received for the company, or its business and assets, on a going concern basis.
“However, there has been significant interest in the Paperchase brand and attendant intellectual property.
“The joint administrators will continue trading the company’s operations in the short term, with all stores remaining open and trading as normal.”
The Harrogate shop, on James Street, is one of 134 branches of Paperchase, which was founded in 1968.
More than 800 staff are employed by the company nationally.
Paperchase went through insolvency proceedings four years ago before being bought out of administration during the pandemic in 2021.
Staff in Harrogate told the Stray Ferret they were unable to comment at this time when we called this morning.
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Ripon jobs in jeopardy as fashion retailer goes into administration
Jobs are at risk on Ripon’s high street today after fashion retailer M&Co fell into administration for the second time in two years.
A notice on the door of the store on Fishergate says Gavin Park, Adele MacLeod and Rob Harding of Teneo Restructuring Limited were appointed joint administrators on Friday and are managing ‘the affairs, business and property of the company’.
A buyer is being urgently sought for the Scottish retail chain, which employs almost 2,000 staff in more than 170 UK shops.
The Ripon store remained open today but staff were unable to comment on the news or confirm how many people are employed there. In the meantime a time-limited flash sale has been launched.
Specialist fashion trade publication Drapers reported first on the Mc&Co news and quoted a spokesman from Teneo, who said:
“Like many retailers, the company has experienced a sharp rise in its input costs, which has coincided with a decline in consumer confidence leading to increased pressure on cash flows and trading losses.
“No immediate redundancies have been made and the joint administrators are exploring a potential sale of the business in an accelerated timeframe, during which time the company will continue to trade from its stores and website.”
Tough trading conditions exacerbated by covid lockdowns previously saw M&Co go into administration in August 2020, but the business was saved when it was bought by its Scottish owners the McGeoch family, in a deal that saw 47 stores close and more than 300 jobs lost.
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