Liquidators move on troubled WridgWays group company

Liquidators have taken control of another firm in the WridgWay group, adding to the more than $15m the struggling 128-year-old removalist already owes creditors.

Liquidators have taken control of another firm in the WridgWays group adding to the more than $15m the troubled 128-year-old removal firm already owes creditors.

Timothy Brace and Peter Gountzos, of SV Partners, were appointed liquidators of Melbourne-based WridgWays Pty Ltd, on December 30 only weeks after another company in the group, Relocation Logistics Australia, also was wound up.

According to a document lodged by Mr Brace with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission, Relocation Logistics Australia owes creditors about $15.8m, including more than half a million to secured creditors.

It is not yet known how much WridgWays Pty Ltd owes creditors. Both WridgWays and another group company WridgWays Australia are listed as related party creditors of Relocation Logistics, claiming the company owes them more than $9m.

Mr Brace has told creditors that the directors of Relocation Logistics have blamed detrimental trading conditions due to COVID as a key factor in the company’s demise.

He said he understood the WridgWays business continued to be operated by other associated entities within the group.

Wridgways Packing Truck

Creditors have told The Australian Business Network that they have contacted the liquidators expressing concern the business was continuing to trade. Mr Brace did not reply to a request for comment.

WridgWays posted a notice on Facebook on December 22 informing customers that it had moved to a new telecoms provider but the transition had “unfortunately not gone as smoothly as we had hoped, with most of our phone lines down yesterday.” Phone calls to WridgWays’ Brisbane and Melbourne offices were not answered Tuesday.

Founded in 1892 by Ernest Wridgways, WridgWays was later taken over by the Danish logistics group Santa Fe. In 2018, Santa Fe sold the Australian operations to the group’s Australia managing director Kobus Fourie in a management buyout for $1. Under the deal, the Danish company agreed to forgive and write off loans of more than $20m. Mr Fourie remains a director of both WridgWays Pty Ltd and Relocation Logistics Australia.

According to a financial report lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the Australian operations, then known as Santa Fe Holdings Australia, made a net loss of $11.49m in 2017 and a net loss of $12.1m the previous year.

The company’s auditors warned at the time that if the business did not establish profitable operations and sell assets there was concern it could not continue as a going concern.