Is business rescue the lifebuoy your business needs?
25 October 2012
Peter has recently inherited the family business from his father, becoming the fourth generation of Morgans in charge of the... established Morgans Handcrafted Furniture company. Peter’s father, having passed away recently, left him in charge of the running of the sizable production warehouse and having learnt the trade under the guidance of his father, Peter has acquired all the skill needed to continue the established tradition of excellence. A few years ago, Peter’s father brought in investors as shareholders into the family company to provide much needed capital to finance the purchase of the current warehouse. Concerned about the death of Peter’s father, these investors are now clamouring for returns on their investment. With a good order book, Peter considers buying them out, yet when he start delving into the financials he realises that many obligations, debts, suppliers and other creditors have not been properly paid by his father and many outstanding accounts have not been collected. In his later years, it becomes apparent that Peter’s father has let the financials slip and suddenly what Peter thought was a healthy and vibrant business, appears to be sinking in a sea of debt. But what to do? Must the family business be sold, assets be made to money, or even be declared insolvent?