Up-market shoe outlet Sneakerboy faces new winding up push

Sneakerboy, which sells up-market shoes for thousands of dollars, is facing fresh legal action to wind up the company over alleged unpaid debts.

Luxury shoe retailer Sneakerboy is facing another threat to its existence, with finance firm Banjo Loans lodging winding up orders against two companies in the group.

This most recent action brings the number of winding up applications lodged against three companies in the Luxury Retail Group to 10 over the past three years, with the most recent actions against Sneakerboy Retail Pty Ltd and Luxury Retail Group (LRG) Pty Ltd itself.

Sneakerboy reportedly launched a surprise online warehouse sale last week, with discounts of more than 70 per cent on some items, however links to that sale now appear to be dead.

Sneakerboy’s main website is still operational, and features high end shoes including $1300 Moncler snow boots and Balenciaga runners sneakers for $1550.

LRG is owned by Melbourne-based Nelson Mair, 50, and Theo Poulakis, 60 - the former owner of up-market menswear retailer Harrolds.

A Sneakerboy store in Melbourne.

The company, which is also licensed to sell Mulberry in Australia, has faced a number of legal actions over the past year or so, including a $1.2m claim from the Australian Taxation Office for unpaid superannuation and taxes, and a $148,000 claim from Adidas, which sought to have the group wound up early last year.

Sneakerboy closed its Brisbane store and removed its listing from its website in early April, leaving it with three stores in Victoria, at Southwharf DFO, Chadstone Shopping Centre and a flagship store on Little Bourke St, as well as a store on George St, Sydney.

Calls to all stores, as well as to the Luxury Retail Group phone number, went unanswered on Thursday.

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The amount of the debt being pursued by Banjo is not clear at this stage.

In mid-April that Sneakerboy’s Queensland landlord, AMP Capital Shopping Centres, had also filed an application to wind up one of the group’s companies - Sneakerboy Pty Ltd - after it had failed to pay rent for more than a year.

It was reported that the Melbourne-based company had failed to comply with a statutory demand for payment of $292,172.94 for the lease of a shop in the Pacific Fair Shopping Centre at Broadbeach.

A report last year said the ATO was pursuing Sneakerboy for $1.2m in unpaid super and taxes, however the company was disputing this.

News Corp Australia was shown documents at the time backing up the claims of unpaid superannuation.

In an email seen by News Corp Australia at the time, Sneakerboy director Nelson Mair said while he did not believe the business owed staff unpaid superannuation, an in-depth review would be undertaken.

“I take this matter seriously, as our employees, past and present, remain our strongest asset and our point of difference in this competitive market,” Mr Mair said in the email.

“We have been working methodically post the Covid period to ensure that all of our compliance is up to date. This has involved us working closely with the ATO to ensure that our calculations, and our processes are correct. My understanding is that we have paid correct entitlements to our employees.

“Nevertheless, given the feedback that we have received we have initiated a review of each and every current and former team member file.”

LRG is owned by Melbourne-based Mr Mair, 50, and Theo Poulakis, 60 - the former owner of up-market menswear retailer Harrolds.

The two men founded menswear business Rhodes & Beckett, which went into voluntary administration in 2017, after which the business was restructured and sold.

Banjo Loans has been contacted for comment.