Taxman seeks to wind-up Confidential firm

THE company behind Manchester Confidential, the online publishing business, is facing a winding-up order next week brought by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.

The case involving Cpub Ltd – whose sole director is Confidential publisher Mark Garner – is due to be heard in London on Monday.

Cpub acquired the business and assets of Manchester Confidential following the liquidation of the site’s previous owner, Planet Confidential Ltd, which was placed into a creditors’ voluntary liquidation in February 2011. Documents filed by Planet Confidential’s liquidators show that it owed the Revenue a total of £330,000 in PAYE and VAT.

Planet Confidential’s total liabilities to creditors was £407,720. Mr Garner was himself owed £70,000.

It had bought the Manchester Confidential business following the closure of the site’s previous owner, 2M Media Ltd, which was wound up in Manchester County Court on June 10, 2009.

As well as lifestyle websites in Manchester, Confidential operates in London, Leeds and Liverpool and also has health and beauty, children’s and travel offerings.

Companies House records list Mr Garner as the sole director of both Cpub and Planet Confidential. He was also a director of 2M Media.

Mr Garner, who writes for the Confidential website as ‘Gordo’, has recently merged his website with How-Do, the company operating the media website of the same name as well as property portal Place North West.

He said the Cpub case was simply a matter of “post-merger house-keeping”, adding: “We’re moving forward strongly and in profit.”

HMRC declined to comment prior to the hearing.