Dusanj brothers back in business at Cains

THE brothers behind the collapsed Liverpool brewer Cains have regained control of the business.

Sudarghara and Ajmail Dusanj have bought the brewing business and nine pubs which were in the original estate they acquired back in 2002.

Cains went into administration on August 7 after its bankers, Bank of Scotland, refused to help refinance the business which has been losing  almost £1m a month in the six months to April.

The company was also unable to pay its tax bills and administrators from PricewaterhouseCoopers were called in.

Cains has been based in Liverpool since 1850, however its problems began following the ill-fated reverse takeover of Honeycombe Leisure last year in a deal that added 92 pubs to the estate and landed the group with around £40m of debt.

The sale to the Dusanj brothers does not include that pub estate which are owned and managed by other group companies, and PwC hopes to dispose of the pubs over the coming months.

Craig Livesey, joint administrator and director at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP said: “After a difficult period of trading for the company in administration, we are pleased that a sale of the business as a going concern has been possible.

“We believe that this sale gives the best chance for continued employment for the majority of the company’s staff and also gives suppliers and customers an opportunity of continued business with the brewery.”