Ashley Fabics, Richard Edwards: Inside Home Appliances Plus’ debts
The two directors of a Tasmanian e-retailer have wound up their company, which owes a staggering $1.9m. Here’s who will be out of pocket most from the collapse.
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A whitegoods e-retailer, owned by two Tasmanian directors and under investigation by most Australian consumer watchdogs, has gone into liquidation, owing at least $1.9m to unsecured creditors.
Steel & Water Pty Ltd, trading as Home Appliances Plus, wound itself up on October 10 in a meeting chaired by Launceston director Richard Douglas Edwards and attended by Devonport director Ashley James Fabics.
The business, which previously featured on Channel 9’s A Current Affair and is under investigation by consumer watchdogs in Tasmania, QLD, Victoria, NSW and Western Australia, at least, took its website down earlier this month, Nine Newspapers reported.
According to a draft report on company activities and property, the company is alleged to owe at least $1,897,735 to dozens of unsecured creditors.
This is offset against estimated assets of $577,993.
Major creditors include buy-now-pay-later outfit Zip Pay, which is owed $87,000; e-commerce platform Shopify (Australia), owed $600,000; and e-commerce and start-up funder ClearCo, owed $1.2m.
Afterpay is also owed an unspecified amount.
Dozens of other creditors are individuals, owed amounts between $41.77–$1010.89.
Steel & Water Pty Ltd was previously registered at a Newnham address, before it was moved to an address in Hobart CBD. It is now registered at the Southport address of liquidator Matthew Bookless, of SV Partners. Mr Bookless did not return a call from the Mercury.
Tasmania’s Consumer, Building and Occupational Services said it was “actively working” on the case, with investigations “well advanced”.
“CBOS is actively investigating a number of complaints relating to Tasmanian consumers who have suffered a financial loss as a result of Home Appliances Plus,” a representative said.
“The investigations are well advanced, and will continue despite recent notice of Home Appliance Plus being placed into liquidation.
“CBOS is unable to provide further information until the investigations are completed.”
The pair’s lawyer, MKW Legal’s Matthew Williams, previously told the Mercury the issues the business faced were due to teething issues, the result of significant growth.
“Home Appliances Plus has serviced thousands of customers and received a significant amount of positive reviews for its service,” he said.
“The recent negative reviews have eventuated after a period of substantial growth for the business. Due to issues with an Australian-based major supplier of the business, numerous orders were unable to be delivered.”
The pair declined to comment on the latest development.
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