SA Quality Home Improvements operator calls in administrators after selling business, is $1m in debt
The operator of an SA home improvements specialist, known for its catchy jingle, has sold the business amid more than $1 million in unpaid debts.
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A South Australian home improvements specialist known for its catchy jingle will live on under new ownership while creditors chase more than $1 million from its previous operator.
The previous owner of SA Quality Home Improvements has called in administrators, six weeks after selling the business to another entity.
Other brands, including Quality Roofing Services, also formed part of the transfer that will be investigated by administrator Tim Clifton from Clifton Hall.
According to Mr Clifton, close to 20 employees have been transferred to the new company, which has also inherited their unpaid entitlements.
Mr Clifton said hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of assets – including cash, debtors, plant and equipment – would go some way to repaying creditors owed more than $1 million, but that a shortfall would result.
“The director has managed to sell the business prior to my appointment – he saw the writing on the wall,” Mr Clifton said.
“Part of my role is to review the transaction to make sure it all stacks up. We’ll look at what they paid and essentially whether the company got value for what it offloaded.”
SA Quality Home Improvements specialises in the installation of roofing, fencing, carports, sheds, verandas and pergolas, with display centres at Clarence Gardens, Pooraka and Port Pirie.
A catchy jingle appearing in a series of TV commercials from the early 2000s encourages clients to consider the company “for service and advice, no gimmicks in the price – SA Quality Home Improvements”.
Mr Clifton said close to 30 contracts for partially completed pergolas and other building works had been transferred to the new business owner WPC Home Improvements.
In a letter to clients, Quality Roofing Services managing director Vincent Barry, who previously ran SA Quality Home Improvements, said the business was sold on September 30, but the brand would continue to trade on.
“You will still get the same quality goods from the same quality suppliers, you will be still be dealing with the same company representative, the same company project manager and your project will still be installed by our existing expert building crews,” he wrote.
“I would like to point out that my reasoning for this change is to get all our projects promptly and expertly installed, achieve the best possible outcome for all our clients, continue strong relationships with our suppliers and maintain ongoing employment for our loyal and valued employees.”
Mr Barry has one month to decide whether to put forward a deed of company arrangement proposal – in effect, a payment plan – to creditors that would avoid the company falling into liquidation.
“We’re in voluntary administration for a month – that gives the director an opportunity to make an offer to creditors,” Mr Clifton said.