Confetti administrators agree sale
THE ADMINISTRATORS of Chadderton-based wedding gifts retailer Confetti have confirmed that they have managed to sell the business to a new buyer, Confetti Celebrations Ltd. The sum paid has not been disclosed.
The deal, which was completed on Wednesday, will lead to all 34 of the remaining staff being transferred to the new business, which is owned by director George Buchan. It also confirmed that all outstanding customer orders will either be fulfilled or refunded as appropriate.
Joint administrators RSM Tenon are believed to have received more than 10 approaches for the business and assets of the firm, which was sold last month by home shopping giant Findel to Northwich-based The Hut Group in a £600,000 deal as part of a package that included gadget retailer iwantoneofthose.com and Findel Direct. The combined businesses declared an operating loss of £3.6m and a pre-tax loss of £13.8m in the year to April 2.
However, The Hut Group was understood to be more interested in iwantoneofthose.com than Confetti, and the business was placed into administration on August 17. Upon being appointed as joint administrators, RSM Tenon closed five high street stores at Birmingham, Reading, Leeds, London and Glasgow, leading to 48 redundancies.
A further 12 posts have gone during the administration period.
Kenny Craig, joint administrator and recovery director at RSM Tenon, said: “We have seen considerable interest in the business in the last few weeks and are delighted to have secured such a successful outcome.”
