Property consultant angers subcontractors by asking for money to remain on supply chain
Beleaguered property consultant Erinaceous has outraged its subcontractors by telling them they must pay to stay on their supply chain.
The company, which has been plagued by senior departures and heavy losses, has emailed its subcontractors asking them to fill in a questionnaire to enable it to 鈥渒now more about its supply chain鈥� and confirm its preferred suppliers.
The email states that a 鈥渕embership fee鈥� of 拢100, plus VAT, is necessary to 鈥渃over administration costs鈥�, and will be payable on receipt of answers to an online questionnaire.
The message states that 鈥渙nce completed and returned online, you will receive an email from us outlining the payment methods鈥�.
The email was dispatched last Wednesday by Wayne Wilson, an employee in the group鈥檚 procurement department. It is understood to have been sent to the entire supply chain of Erinaceous Managed Services, which includes building contractors on its maintenance and refurbishment projects.
The email says that this part of the
supply chain accounts for 60% of the overall spend of
the Erinaceous group.
One subcontractor, who did not wish to
be named, said: 鈥淭his is ridiculous. I have never been asked to pay to be on anyone鈥檚 supply chain 鈥� let alone a company with Erinaceous鈥� problems. They want us to subsidise them, and it鈥檚 not going to
丑补辫辫别苍.鈥�
The consultant recently revealed itself to be on the brink of financial ruin with losses of 拢3.1m for the six months to June after an acquisition spree during which it bought more than half a dozen companies, including consultants Nolan Associates and Dearle & Henderson.
Neil Bellis, the chief executive, and Lucy Cummings, the chief operating officer, left last month, receiving a 拢736,000 pay-off as part of a restructure.
The consultant will now be split into
two, with professional services and management services under the banner
NAI capital UK as a semi-autonomous company.
The Erinaceous name will be retained under the new divisions Erinaceous Residential Management and Erinaceous Property Maintenance.
An Erinaceous spokesperson said:
鈥淭his is a commercial move by the
company to rationalise an untenable
supply chain in excess of 15,000 companies
to 500.鈥�
It emerged this week that Six Erinaceous employees have defected to property agent Savills. And Stephen Armitage, the former executive director of Dunlop Hawyard, which was bought by Erinaceous in 2005, has quit the company to join industrial developer
Brixton.
