Wetherby-based furniture manufacturer Moores Furniture Group was sold for £200,000 after being placed into administration.
James Clark and Will Wright from Interpath were appointed joint administrators to Moores Furniture Group Limited on 19 January 2021.
Detailed in newly filed documents on Companies House, administrators said that in the 12 months prior to entering administration, sales volumes at the Company suffered significantly following the insolvency of a major customer and the pausing of orders from a large public sector customer. This was further exacerbated by rising input costs and low levels of housebuilding activity.
As a result, the Company was facing a funding requirement of approximately £2m in 2026. Given a worsening cash position and the forecast funding requirement, the Company engaged Interpath Advisory to explore the options available.
The directors sought to explore other options available, including options for sale and investment. However, when no solvent outcomes were available, they took the difficult decision to file for the appointment of administrators.
Upon appointment, the administrators immediately concluded a sale of the customer list and certain other intellectual property assets to Wren Trade Kitchens Limited, a subsidiary of Wren Kitchens Ltd via a pre-pack administration process for a total sum of £200,000.
Additionally, the Purchaser will pay deferred consideration equal to 15% of sales (net of certain allowable deductions), arising from transferred customer contracts, which are made within 13 months from the date of completion, up to a maximum aggregate of £15m.
As a priority, the administrators have been working with customers to try to reduce disruption in the supply chain, and as such, have retained circa 336 members of staff to support with this process. The administrators also confirmed the redundancies of approximately 124 employees.
With regards to creditors, preferential creditor claims, which consist of employee creditors, are owed £313,000, while the HMRC is owed £2.4m. It is expected that both should be repaid in full from realised assets valuing £5.7m.
Hilco is also owed approximately £29.6m as at the date of administration, inclusive of sums committed after acquiring the book debts from Bibby. Based on current estimates, it is uncertain whether Hilco will recover its indebtedness in full.
As for unsecured creditors, claims totalled £24.8m, which included £5.8m to the trade, a further £6.4m to employees and £13m to its pension scheme. It is expected that creditors will suffer a shortfall of £66.4m.
Founded in 1947 in West Yorkshire, Moores Furniture Group grew to become one of the UK’s most experienced furniture manufacturers, supplying kitchens to housebuilders, as well as to the public sector and affordable housing developers.
At the time of the appointment, James Clark, managing director at Interpath and joint administrator, said: “The strong headwinds facing the UK construction industry continue to have an impact on companies up and down the supply chain.
“Against this backdrop, we are pleased to have been able to secure a transaction which provides an opportunity to minimise disruption for customers and suppliers, and which will enable Moores’ heritage in kitchen manufacturing to continue as part of the Wren family.”
