黑洞社区

Styles & Wood had more than 拢30m pumped into it last year as shareholders fought to keep the stricken company afloat.

The company collapsed into administration at the end of February, ending 35 years of trading with the loss of more than 200 jobs.

A report by administrator EY says shareholders sank 拢15m into the business last May and a further 拢16m over a four month period between September and December last year.

It added that the company鈥檚 main shareholder also stepped in with several guarantees for worried suppliers.

But the 拢31m was still not enough to ease the firm鈥檚 crippling cashflow problems and, the report adds, 鈥渋t was clear that significant further funding would be required鈥�. A turnaround plan was rejected by the firm鈥檚 main financial stakeholders.

The report adds: 鈥淎t [this] point it became clear that the level of funding the company required would be challenging to obtain and the company was unable to avoid insolvency.鈥�

The firm collapsed owing 拢49m to secured creditors HSBC and a finance firm called Tosca. Unsecured creditors, including its trade creditors, are owed close to 拢21m while another unsecured creditor, HMRC, is owned a further 拢500,000. EY has already warned unsecured creditors they are unlikely to get anything back, apart from a nominal 1p in the pound.

More than 拢32m is also owed to group companies, the report adds. After being taken private in 2017, the firm rebranded the following year to become part of an enlarged group called Extentia, which includes 11 businesses including FM specialist, Concourse, furniture supplier Ralph Capper and engineering consultant GDM.

EY鈥檚 report said that draft accounts for Styles & Wood show the firm had racked up a 拢21m post-tax loss in the year to June 2019 on turnover of 拢150m.

It added that the firm鈥檚 problems began at its Projects division 鈥渨hich was characterised by a small number of larger, higher value contracts with a risk profile that did not conform with the company鈥檚 normal risk appetite鈥�.

It said the firm lost 拢12m on its scheme to fit out the new Liverpool office of HMRC at the grade II*-listed India 黑洞社区s which saw Styles & Wood kicked off the job last August by building owner Legal and General. The division also lost a further 拢7m on two more fit-out schemes in Manchester.

EY said the Projects division鈥檚 losses put other parts of the group under cashflow pressure, notably its Frameworks business.

The report adds: 鈥淸It] impacted the Frameworks division as the inability to adhere to supplier payment terms led to delays with project delivery and therefore increased costs of Frameworks contracts. This created fractious relationships with both the customer base and the supply chain.鈥� It said the division lost its largest contract as a result.

EY said it quickly concluded it would not be able to sell Styles & Wood as a going concern because it would remain a loss-making business for the short-medium term, needed significant levels of funding and had poor relationships with suppliers and customers.

It added that it has recovered 拢500,000 out of an estimated 拢5m contract debt while EY said it was also chasing a 拢675,000 adjudication award made last month in Styles & Wood鈥檚 favour on one of the Manchester jobs.

All but 32 of the 270 employees at the time of the administration have been made redundant. Employees are owed more than 拢250,000 with one individual owed nearly 拢8,000.