Former Australian company behind popular music festival Your Paradise goes bust, owes over $1m
The Sydney-based founding company behind a star-studded island music festival has left a trail of ‘financial devastation’ in its wake after collapsing, owing over $1m to creditors.
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An Australian company behind a popular music and lifestyle festival in Fiji, which went bust owing over a million dollars to creditors, has left a trail of tourism businesses on the island in “financial devastation”.
The Sydney-based business, called Your Paradise Events Holdings, which ran festival Your Paradise since 2014, collapsed owing unsecured creditors over $1.1m.
The annual event has featured various well-known DJs in recent years, including Patrick Topping, Fisher, Golden Features, What So Not, Holy Goof, Mija and Doorly.
Insolvency expert Travis Pullen of B&T Advisory, who has combed through the financial wreckage of the company, claimed the business had traded whilst insolvent since 2021, ultimately referring his findings to Australia’s corporate watchdog.
The business first entered administration in July last year, with creditors voting to liquidate the company months later in August.
Mr Pullen said the director, Ignacio Martinez, purchased the company’s intellectual property during the administration period for $11,000.
The brand continues to run, with an upcoming Your Paradise festival in Fiji this October, and in the Maldives next year, with packages for the multi-night events starting at $2399.
“Travellers from across the globe experience five nights in an exclusive island resort, connecting, discovering and, all while dancing to some of the world’s best electronic music,” their website reads.
“Up to 600 guests, artists and staff live on the island for 5 nights and 6 days. All Packages are inclusive of accommodation, daily breakfast, access to see artists and our inclusions.”
Your Paradise Events Holdings collapsed with a total of $1,191,761 in liabilities, the majority owed to 43 unsecured creditors
This included six related entity creditors, such as shareholders Swerve Group ($122,577), Swerve Productions ($148,647) The Paxx Group ($100,965) and Fnutcamel ($86,872).
The only assets realised from the liquidation was the $11,000 paid by the director for the intellectual property.
“At this stage, a dividend is unlikely to any class of creditor,” Mr Pullen told creditors during the liquidation.
A creditor of the business told News Corp “the scale of financial devastation (had been) staggering”.
“Multiple Fijian tourism businesses – including ground handlers, sea transport operators, resorts – were left unpaid after providing services for the 2023 Your Paradise event,” they said.
“These businesses, as did I, trusted the company’s promises and delivered services in good faith, only to be abandoned when payment came due.”
Mr Pullen said preliminary investigations suggested the director may have breached duties by failing to “exercise reasonable care and diligence in the discharge of (his) duties” and allowing the company to trade while insolvent.
“My investigations indicate the company was likely insolvent from at least June 2021,” he said.
“The company had incurred trading losses in periods prior to 30 June 2021, only made a modest profit that year, and then proceeded to incur further losses after that.
“I have reported the results of my findings to date with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) … in its response, ASIC have advised they do not intend to take any further action in relation to the matters raised in my report.”
Mr Pullen said the company ran as an annual event for several years from 2014, generally experiencing growth year on year, until the Covid pandemic.
“This created a severely impacted festival in 2020 and the 2021 event did not go ahead,” he said.
“The 2022 event was affected financially by the company honouring 2020 bookings for this event.”
A Your Paradise spokesperson said the company had delivered unique events in Fiji for over a decade, “bringing international visitors and generating significant economic value through tourism, employment, and local partnerships”.
“While the liquidation in 2024 impacted creditors, the broader benefit to the Fijian economy has been substantial,” they said.
“Like many in the live events and travel industry, the original operating company was heavily affected by Covid and ongoing travel disruptions.”
The spokesperson said the company’s intellectual property was acquired by Destino Co “through the proper process”, with the aim of continuing to deliver value for guests and stakeholders under a more sustainable structure.
“ASIC reviewed the liquidator’s report and confirmed no further action would be taken,” they said.
“We’re focused on moving forward with a clearer foundation and delivering the experience people know and love.”
It comes after the company behind Victorian bush doof festival Esoteric went bust last month.
Other popular multi-day festivals like Splendour in the Grass and Groovin the Moo have also suffered cancellations in recent times, reflecting a trend of economic uncertainty and hardship for the live entertainment industry in Australia.
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Originally published as Former Australian company behind popular music festival Your Paradise goes bust, owes over $1m
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