370 jobs at risk at retail supplier
SP Group has become the latest casualty of problems on the high street after it collapsed into administration, putting 371 jobs at risk.
The Redditch-based business produces point of sale and display solutions for many high street retailers and brands and for the hospitality sector.
Allan Graham and Matt Ingram, both of Duff & Phelps, have today been appointed administrators to SP Group.
Graham warned “there may be substantial job losses” even if they are able to preserve large parts of the business.
Marketing services group St Ives sold SP Group to SelmerBridge, a vehicle for French investor Landry Kouakou, as part of a £6m sale. St Ives marketing activation businesses had lost £4.4m in its 2017 financial year on revenues of £106.3m.
The deal included three other companies – field marketing agencies Tactical Solutions UK and its subsidiary Flare, and large format graphics business Service Graphics – and Kouakou has issued a statement to reassure staff and suppliers about the strength of those businesses.
He said: “SP Group itself has faced a number of on-going challenges not least a dramatic decline in sales in what is a highly competitive market with the loss of a number of key accounts both before and after the acquisition from St Ives.”
“This is not the picture at Service Graphics and Tactical Solutions where current sales are strong and the order book is robust. Both businesses are not going to be impacted by the administration of SP Group now and into the future.”
