Sydney star’s ‘wellness’ business Aquamamma insolvent, court says

Former rich-lister Robert Bates is now being chased by the tax office over unpaid debts in court, as his fall from millionaire status continues.

Robert Bates with former partner Emma Gibson of Aquamamma and Aurum+. Picture: Paul Harris

Once lauded as a Sydney wellness star and entrepreneur, Robert Bates’s downfall has continued after his defunct company Acqua Mamma was wound up in court.

Mr Bates, who has been snapped with a new love interest in billionaire heiress Francesca Packer, was said to be worth $145m just years ago but is now being pursued by the tax office for failing to pay just over $170,000 in debts.

On Friday, during a hearing that lasted minutes, Federal Court registrar Peter Schmidt ordered the business to be wound up and declared insolvent.

“The originating application was not invalid … (and) Acqua Mamma Pty Ltd be wound up in insolvency under the provision of the Corporations Act,” he said.

Aquamamma CEO Robert Bates with ex-partner Emma Gibson. Source: Facebook

Mr Bates is listed as the director of Acqua Mamma Pty Ltd and the Aquamamma Group, which is the current spelling of the defunct business.

The defunct wellness empire, which included brands Aquamamma — a business that marketed “healthy hydration solutions” for pregnant women — and Aurum+ — a company that marketed tablets to “calm down your inflammatory immune responses”, has fallen from grace in a matter of years after debuting as a young rich lister in 2020.

Website links for both companies are broken, but social media pages remain live and littered with customer complaints claiming they have paid for products but are yet to actually receive them.

Mr Bates and his former partner Emma Gibson launched the businesses together, had been heralded as a power couple amassing serious amounts of wealth in about 2020.

The Australian reported in 2021 the serial entrepreneur and rich lister was worth $145m when he listed his Wategos retreat near Byron Bay at 45 Bronwell Drive.

That same address is where the ATO intended to serve its application for winding up, which according to company records is the business’s current registered office.

The news came after The Australian revealed the Australian Taxation Office lodged its application to have the company wound up.

Robert Bates.

According to their application, the ATO said the company owes nearly $85,000 worth of unpaid super and has a running balance account deficit debt of $88,000.

“The defendant failed to pay the amount of the debt demanded or to secure or compound for that amount to the plaintiff‘s reasonable satisfaction within 21 days after the demand was served on the defendant,” the document states.

“The company owes the deputy commissioner of taxation … (“the creditor”) the amount of $172,376.32.”

The documents say a “running balance account deficit debt” worth $88,159.70 is owed, calculated as at June 9, 2023.

As well, the company must pay six individual superannuation guarantee charges plus interest which are all overdue — in some cases by two years — at a total value of $84,216.62.

Superannuation guarantee charges are applied when employers don’t pay the minimum amount of super to their eligible staff.

In three cases, more than $20,000 is owed to individual staff members and that money was payable from April 2022 to March 2023.

Acqua Mamma Pty Ltd and the Aquamamma Group are both currently registered companies, with Mr Bates listed as the director and at the Bronwell Drive address.