Welcome to our Autumn Newsletter
'The King of the North' comes bearing gifts - will he deliver the help business needs?
These are changed times compared to earlier this summer with a change of Government and Prime Minister. Out goes the dour and uninspiring Kier Starmer and in comes the more positive minded Andy Burnham. 'The King of the North' brings promises of breathing new life into the high street, helping hospitality and even ending the scandals surrounding privatised water companies. Whether these plans actually happen we'll have to wait and see as the country is facing strong economic headwinds. Increases in fuel prices due to the unresolved Iran-USA War, energy hikes from that war and the one in Ukraine, the continuing fall out of the bad Brexit deal although at least some progress has been made to lessen its affects and the rise in National Insurance contributions from last year's Budget which caused so many problems for businesses. Another one of Andy Burnham's promises was to reform business rates - that is something that can't come soon enough.
In the meantime it has been a summer of business failures and companies falling into administration - some which we chart on our website and in this newsletter. The climate for business is challenging and at ICSM we have spent five decades in helping members get paid on time and chasing up bad debts on their behalf through our debt collection service. Each decade has brought new changes for honest businesses trying to get paid and managing a healthy cash flow. ICSM helps members with our FREE legal letters, our FREE micro debt service and our highly efficient and diplomatic debt collection service which recovers thousands of pounds every year.
Governments have come and gone and despite their promises to help business the promises often turn out to be false dawns. SMEs, sole traders, freelancers, the self employed and independent high street shops are the back bone of this nation's enterprise - so we can only hope that this time the promises from 'the King of the North' are kept.
Kind regards
Ian Carrotte
Proprietor
ICSM CREDIT
For information on ICSM visit www.icsmcredit.com or call 0844 854 1850.
ICSM, The Exchange, Express Park, Bristol Road, Bridgwater, Somerset TA6 4RR. Tel: 0844 854 1850. www.icsmcredit.com. Ian.
For details about ICSM Credit call 0844 854 1850 or visit the website www.icsmcredit.com or email Ian at Ian.carrotte@icsmcredit.com
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NEWS
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See out website www.icsmcredit.com for more detailed news, views and features - but here are the latest headlines:
Printing and Allied Trades
Ovenden Papers
Last month the world of paper and card sales was rocked with the news that Ovenden Papers was acquired out of administration by the far larger Antalis. The Harlow based firm founded in 1943 had seen profits plunge in the last couple of years with a pretax loss of more than £1m last year prompting Ovenden to post a notice of intention to appoint an administrator on September 18th, 2026.
Print Week’s Richard Stuart-Turner reported: “Michael John Magnay and Michael Denny from Alvarez & Marsal Europe were subsequently appointed as administrators of the company the following day, on 18 September, the same day as the Antalis acquisition.” The journalist said that ‘in its most recently filed full accounts at Companies House, made up to 31 March 2025, Ovenden Papers reported sales of £37.9m, down 17.3% year-on-year, and a pre-tax loss of £1.26m, compared to a pre-tax profit of nearly £40,000 the previous year. At the time it had 54 employees.’
Ian Carrotte of ICSM said this was very sad as Ovenden Papers had been an important part of the paper and card industry as well as supplying envelopes and assorted related products. He said the firm had faced various problems including inflationary pressures, higher interest rates and increased operating costs with energy hikes in particular hitting the company which had seen margins cut in the previous financial year. Print Week reported that Nick Thompson, regional managing director at Antalis UKI, had said: “While it is disappointing to see a long-established business such as Ovenden Papers Ltd enter administration, we are pleased to have been able to acquire its assets and trade and provide a route forward.
“Ovenden Papers has established customer relationships, experienced employees and valuable market knowledge. Our immediate priority is to provide stability and continuity for customers, suppliers and employees while we undertake a detailed review of the business and its operations. We see opportunities to build on the strengths of Ovenden Papers and combine these with Antalis’ product portfolio, distribution network and wider resources. We look forward to working with the team and customers.”
The paper and packaging juggernaut is part of the Kokusai Pulp & Paper Group, a worldwide leader in Papers, Packaging and Visual Communication distribution headquartered in Japan and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In Europe and Latin America, Antalis is a leading B2B distributor of products and services in Papers and industrial Packaging, and number two in the distribution of Visual Communication media. Headquartered in the Paris area (France), Antalis operates in 31 countries serving over 100,000 customers with a team of 4,000 employees and breakthrough e-commerce solutions.
Precision Colour Printing
Print Week has been charting how many views its stories get during the summer and have found many of the most popular ones are about printing companies hitting the rocks. Top of the list of stories of gloom is the news of Precision Colour Printing in Telford who entered administration at the end of August making their workforce of 150 out of work just four months after the firm was acquire by Precision Colour Media. The there was the demise of Tyne and Wear based commercial printing outfit Jasprint. The end came when the firm's largest customer went bust – ICSM understands that Simpson Print owed the company £63,785 which would have been a major blow resulting in the collapse.
Ian Carrotte of ICSM said that relying on one major customer is always a risk as it means a business is a hostage to fortune with one bad debt causing a knock effect down the credit line. Further south Aylesbury high-volume mailing house GB Mail have been liquidated following its closure on July 3. The scroll of doom compiled by Print Week also listed some eye-wateringly high debts left by a number of printing firms. They reported: “Derwent Displays owed its former owner £1.7m when it went into administration in July, Simpson Group left an estimated shortfall of more than £4m, including nearly £2.5m owed to trade creditors and Vanacomm has left a massive estimated shortfall of nearly £6m, raising further questions about previous statements from its shareholders about a supposedly orderly shutdown.”
September casualties: UK-Euro Printing Limited of Baldock, Hertfordshire. Liquidation. September 2026. Company Number: 04687451.
Guildford Print Finishers Limited. Liquidation. September 2026. Company Number: 05856456.
3B Design and Print Limited. Unit 1, Arthur Business Park, March. Liquidation. September 2026. Company Number: 04672256
MFN & RE Tame Limited. 2 Ravensmead, Chinnor, Oxfordshire. Liquidation.
Rocha Print Solutions. The Workshop, 198-199 Parrock Street, Gravesend. Liquidation.
AD COLOUR LIMITED. Unit F 24 Lyon Road, Hersham, Walton-on-Thames. Company Number: 05062483
PRECISION COLOUR PRINTING LIMITED. Haldane, Halesfield 1, Telford. Liquidation.
More Printing Industry Problems
As the business world looks to the Chancelor’s autumn budget hoping he doesn’t hike National Insurance contributions like his predecessor there is still an alarming number of insolvencies across all sectors. When paper merchant Ovenden was taken over by Antalis this autumn after they fell into administration the reasons were given asl inflation, hikes in energy costs and ‘a challenging market.’ All true but the common denominator in insolvencies is an inability to service debt.
The graphics, signage, media and printing and allied trades is one of the most volatile of industries due to way clients can order huge amounts of work in a short space of time and then order nothing for months. Cashflow is often the problem and more in that line have featured in the Gazette’s pages this year. Pop culture and merchandise retailer ZavviGroup Ltd (trading as Zavvi) collapsed into administration and ceased trading on October 12, 2026, resulting in the loss of around 70 jobs. Meanwhile there has been a meeting of creditors last month to decide on the debts left by insolvent firm Area Screen Printers of Breakspear Road South, Uxbridge. Global Counsel: Peter Mandelson’s political lobbying and advisory firm went into administration/bust earlier in 2026 owing £4.6 million. Stratacache UK & PRN Retail Media, The tech and digital in-store advertising providers for high street chains like Currys and Iceland entered liquidation in May while the outdoor and roadside billboard advertising firm 75Media have entered voluntary liquidation. While last month Wiseman Press were shut down by the Insolvency Service for falsifying records – they were linked to six other firms who were wound up in the public interest at the High Court in Manchester on 22 September 2026.
David Usher, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service said: “These seven companies have been successfully shut down, and my thanks go to Companies House for their assistance in providing key evidence for these cases. This should send a clear message that companies cannot use false filings or misleading information to gain credibility and put other businesses at risk.”
Picking up on breaches of the law as former director of BCQ Group in Cranfield has been disqualified for 10 years as a director of a business for the misuse of an invoicing finance facility. Print Week’s Richard Stuart-Turner reported: “The Insolvency Service said that between 27 April 2023 and 30 May 2023, Churchward caused BCQ Group to misuse its Invoice Finance Facility by submitting notifications for non-existent debts, resulting in a loss to the lender of £383,780. From 1 January 2019 until his suspension on 20 July 2023, Stewart Andrew Churchward was a director of BCQ with responsibility for financial matters, including debtor reporting and the operation of the Invoice Finance Facility. An audit conducted by the lender from 17 to 19 July 2023 established that between 27 April 2023 and 30 May 2023, notifications totalling £843,303 were submitted to the lender using Churchward’s unique login credentials, for which no genuine invoices had been issued by BCQ.”
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Economy and Interest Rates
The USA have hiked interest rates to 4% in September sending economic ripples across the globe. In Britain on the same day the Bank of England have opted to hold interest rates at 3.75% for a sixth consecutive month although there are concerns, they could rise to match the USA’s rate by Christmas as inflation is over 3% - slightly lower than in America – the reason for the rise there. Ian Carrotte of ICSM said both economies are being affected by the unresolved Iran-USA War which has seen oil prices for Brent Crude Oil rise above $100 a barrel again. He said: “The sooner the conflict is ended the sooner the world economy can stabilise. Every time there’s a cease fire or peace talks oil prices fall – we just need a permanent end to the fighting and the Strait of Hormuz opened to normal maritime traffic.” He said the rise in diesel at the pump adversely affects hauliers and logistics in general leading to costs for virtually everything we buy rising. That also puts pressure on SMEs and sole traders who have to pass on the costs to their customers – further creating issues of being paid on time. Some customers resist the increases and seek extra time to pay their suppliers in order to gain some free credit to offset inflation – but that leads to cash flow problems for businesses.
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Broadband
Broadband provider Talk Talk is to be taken over by telecommunications giant BT in a £400m pre-pack deal after it fell into administration on October 5th. The acquisition has been given the blessing by the Government to protect the two and half million Talk Talk customers from losing connectivity along with the 900 staff, various contractors and the firm’s subsidiaries. The decision hasn’t gone down well with rival Internet Service Provider Virgin Media 02. Their CEO Lutz Schùˆler said: “Protecting customers does not, in our view, require Government to predetermine who should ultimately own TalkTalk's consumer and wholesale businesses; credible alternative arrangements should be fully explored.”
Back in the pre privatisation era when the Post Office ran the telecommunications sector
In the pre-internet era British Telecoms was separated from the Post Office in the 1970s, rebranded as BT and privatised in the 80s before full privatisation in the 1990s and 2000s. There was a proliferation of independent telephone companies all grabbing a share of what had been initially a state monopoly. The Credit Crunch of 2008 triggered by the sub-prime scandal in the USA saw some of these new independents collapse and merge. Now there is an accepted wisdom in the industry that there could be a new wave of mergers.
Ian Carrotte of ICSM said that Talk Talk was struggling due to having accrued £3.3bn in debt making it unviable. He said the main concern was for the creditors as the pre-pack would effectively make Talk Talk debt free as it was absorbed into BT. He said that ICSM understands that the deal used a ‘hive down’ – essentially Talk Talk’s retail and wholesale outlets were moved to new companies which BT bought meaning that BT didn’t get lumbered with the Talk Talk debts. The creditors include Ares Management who will lose around £500m, KKR will lose £60 and various bondholders and Asset Management outfits will see around £685m gone west while Openreach – the BT subsidiary – have written off £100m.
There has been much talk in business circles about a potential AI Bubble creating another Credit Crunch forcing banks and lenders to call in loans. When that happens the whole pack of cards begins to collapse – but economies have proved to be more resilient than in the past as has been proved by the unresolved oil crisis due to the Iran-USA war. But there is likely to be a shakedown of broadband providers since Talk Talk were number four in the UK behind BT, Virgin Media O2 and Sky Broadband, but ahead of Vodaphone. Previously Tak Talk had acquired Tiscali, AOL, Tesco Broadband, Origin and SSE – while BT owns Plusnet, EE and Openreach – which legally must power broadband for other competing providers like Sky and Vodaphone.
Ian Carrotte of ICSM in Somerset, said it reminded him of when a number of energy firms collapsed and were taken over by the ‘Big Four’ in 2021-2022. Then there was a huge market shrinkage with 70 energy firms reduced to 17. Whether that happens this time we must wait and see he said – but there are serious questions to be asked about how the privatised sectors operate which has seen a debt free state monopoly split into many operators who have run up eye-wateringly high debts – only to be bailed out by their rivals - and their creditors having their fingers burnt.
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Charities go bust as well
Charities are no different from businesses – some are tiny and run by volunteers, some large run by paid staff while others are vast international concerns. Nearly all rely on grants, donations and income generated by a range of commercial activities while others may have the luxury of previous bequests and financial trusts which guarantee a regular income. And the one thing they all have in common with businesses is they can go bust or fall into administration.
The reasons why charities become insolvent are no different from commercial outfits with a falling income, increased overheads and running costs, the loss of a major revenue stream such as a grant and mismanagement. That was certainly the case of London based Fashion for Relief run in part by model Naomi Cambell which raised nearly £4.8m in five years but only passed on a fraction of that amount to save the Children with 90% of its income spent on luxury hotel stays, cigarettes and spa visits for the trustees. It was wound up in 2024 with Cambell banned from being a director of a charity for five years following the scandal while several of the suppliers for its lavish fashion events were left unpaid. The Charity Commission said this year there had been a rise on 27.7% of charities finding themselves in financial difficulties noting 41% of charities spent more than they earned last financial year, and a quarter had incomes of less than £10K. In contrast the UK’s largest charities have incomes that run into billions – and millions in many more cases.
Ian Carrotte of ICSM said that sadly when it comes to insolvency charities are not (excuse the pun) not charities. He noted that this summer the deaf children’s charity Auditory Verbal in Bicester, went into liquidation in May, leaving the 30 staff without a job and creditors owed £433,557. That’s small change when it comes to some colleges and private schools that are registered as charities with some like the Clitheroe based Moorland Private School that closed with debts of £1.7m, including £500,000 owed to HMRC and £700,000 to Barclays – and £6,000 in unpaid invoices to the local electrician. The ICSM CEO said suppliers to charities should treat them like any business client and not to allow the lame excuses over late payment to cloud their judgement. He said that some charities will play the sympathy card when things are tight financially but it is important for suppliers so stick to their terms of credit rather than end up with unpaid invoices.
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Retailing needs Burnham's promised help
Welcoming Andy Burnham's promises to lessen the burden on high street retailers ICSM's Ian Carrotte said too many high streets have lost the very attractions which once drew in shoppers from miles around. He said: "Expensive parking, the closure of major department stores and high business rates have all contributed to the current situation. Too many tattoo shops, vape and betting outlets, charity shops and so called mini marts have removed the variety that once existed. Before the lockdowns during Covid, and before cheap Chinese goods flooded the internet there would be shoe shops, fashion stores, toy shops, hardware stores, pubs and clubs - and tobacconists and newsagents - in fact every business you can think of. We can't turn back the clock to the 1990s but we can make it fairer so out of town centres and internet shopping giants are taxed proportionally."
Writing for Insolvency Insider Monica Kapur listed these stores that had come and gone which helps to explain the decline: Woolworths – collapsed in 2008; BHS – collapsed in 2016; Debenhams – stores closed in 2021, brand now online; House of Fraser – survived with significantly reduced estate; Comet – collapsed in 2012; Maplin – collapsed in 2018, later revived online; Phones 4U – collapsed in 2014; Toys R Us UK – collapsed in 2018; Blockbuster – closed following streaming disruption; Borders – closed UK stores; Wilko – entered administration in 2023, brand partially revived; The Body Shop – UK administration in 2024; Ted Baker – UK retail administration and store closures in 2024; The Original Factory Shop – administration in January 2026; Quiz – administration process in early 2026.
The latest casualty is the floor coverings distributor Headlam (pictured) that has entered administration with Interpath with 154 redundancies and 28 trade counter closures, with lenders backing a proposed CVA. LK Bennett Fashion closed in January but at one stage had over 100 branches – many overseas – with hundreds of staff. By the end, the once major British retail fashion chain was left with a handful of stores and an online business which is also closed. A report by liquidators this month shows the firm owed more than £10m to creditors. It is hoped once all the liabilities have been finalised then a relaunch is possible – on a reduced scale – similar to the way Laura Ashley was saved in a much smaller concern.
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ICSM CREDIT
For information on ICSM visit www.icsmcredit.com or call 0844 854 1850.
ICSM, The Exchange, Express Park, Bristol Road, Bridgwater, Somerset TA6 4RR. Tel: 0844 854 1850. www.icsmcredit.com. Ian.
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Types of Insolvency
Administration
Administration applies to limited companies and partnerships and is intended to get the company out of trouble and trading again if possible. Administrators can be appointed to a company that is unable, or is likely to become unable, to pay its debts. They can be appointed by the courts (on application from a creditor, directors or partners), the holder of a qualifying floating charge over the assets of the business, or the company or its directors. An administrator's primary goal is to rescue the company as a going concern. If this isn't possible, the administrator will try to get a better result for the creditors than would be possible if the company was wound up. If neither of these is possible, the administrator will sell the company's property to make at least a partial payment to one or more secured or preferential creditors, such as employees or the bank.
Administrators Meetings Para 51
This statement by the administrator of his proposals must be accompanied by an invitation to an initial creditors' meeting (Sch B1, para 51(1)).
Bankruptcy
This can only apply to individuals (including sole traders and individual members of a partnership). Bankruptcy petitions may be presented to the court by the individual, by creditors who are owed £750 or more, or by the supervisor of an individual voluntary arrangement. A bankruptcy order is made by the court.
Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA)
A company comes to an arrangement with its creditors to pay the debts in full or in part over time. A CVA begins with the company (or its adviser) drafting a formal proposal at a Creditors' Meeting to pay part or all of the debts. If the proposal is accepted by the creditors, the arrangement will become legally binding and the directors will retain control of the company.
Compulsory Liquidation
This is the winding up of a company or a partnership by a court order (a winding up order). A petition is normally presented to the court by a creditor stating that he or she is owed a sum of money by the company and that the company cannot pay.
The Official Receiver becomes liquidator when the order is made but an Insolvency Practitioner will be appointed to take over if the company has significant assets. The liquidator's role is to realise the company's assets, pay all the fees and charges arising from the liquidation, and pay the creditors as far as funds allow in a strict order of priority.
Compulsory Liquidators Appointed S 136
When a winding-up order has been made, the Official Receiver is initially appointed as liquidator (section 136, IA 1986). The company's creditors and contributories may appoint another individual, who must be a registered insolvency practitioner, to act as liquidator (section 139, IA 1986). More than one liquidator can be appointed to act jointly.
Creditors' Voluntary Liquidation
Here the shareholders pass a resolution to wind the company up without the need for a court order. A Creditors' Meeting is held to nominate the appointment of a liquidator and consider a statement of affairs. Creditors can appoint a committee to work with the liquidator, whose role is to realise the company's assets, pay all the fees and charges arising from the liquidation, and pay the creditors as far as funds allow in a strict order of priority.
Creditors' Voluntary Liquidation Deemed in Consent Meeting
Creditors are now 'deemed to have consented' to a decision or resolution if 10% of creditors (by value) have not objected to it. In other words, if objections are not received by the specified decision date, creditors are 'deemed to have consented' to the decision or resolution.
Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)
An individual comes to an arrangement with creditors to pay his/her debts in full or in part over time as an alternative to bankruptcy. The arrangement is set up by a licensed Insolvency Practitioner who will put it to a meeting of creditors. If the proposal is accepted at the meeting, the agreement reached with the creditors will be legally binding. An Interim Order is sometimes issued by a court and will immediately protect the debtor from any legal action by creditors.
Petitions to Wind Up
A winding up petition is a legal notice put forward to the court by a creditor. The application, in effect, asks the court to liquidate the company as they believe the company is insolvent. Proceeds of the liquidation can be used to pay back creditors.
Secretary of State
The Secretary of State may appoint an insolvency practitioner as liquidator or trustee as an alternative to holding a meeting of creditors in certain circumstances.
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