BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
[Uploaded to BikeBiz.co.uk on 9th October]
The fact a buyer is waiting in the wings was disclosed in today’s creditors’ meeting which finished an hour ago and was held at the Birmingham offices of insolvency practitioners, Smith & Williamson.
Liquidator-to-be Tony Murphy of Smith & Williamson told the assembled creditors that he might be called away to discuss the bid, but no bid transpired during this, the second creditor’s meeting.
BikeBiz asked Murphy afterwards for the identity of the potential purchaser but he would only reveal that it was an a non-US overseas bid. The bid was held up because of "time differences".
Sturmey Archer director and Lenark prime mover, Barry Robinson, again took a verbal beating from creditors but was able to rebuff all of the questions thrown at him.
After the suits finished squabbling over who would get what fees, Tony Murphy organised a vote to see who would be appointed as the official liquidator.
The voters went for a joint liquidation team of KPMG (depite the fact they were representing Derby) and Smith & Williamson.
Appointed to the creditors’ committee were Nick Sanders, Roger Airie and Tony Anthony of Stumey Archer, John Fields Richards of Deloitte Touche and Paul Finnity of PriceWaterHouseCoopers.
The committee members said they would be investigating Derby’s July sale of Sturmey Archer.
