It might seem incongruous that anyone could get too exercised about the fate of perennially struggling fashion group Specialty Fashion.

In a sector full of companies clinging to life, Specialty has at times looked like a candidate for the scrap heap; its directors said the business was a going concern in the December accounts, but with debts of $20.5 million bank funding that will soon be cut from $40 million to just $22 million, it looked a close-run thing.