3rd Dec 2018 11:55
LONDON (Alliance News) - Crawshaw Group PLC on Monday said it ceased to trade after disposing of some businesses and assets to Loughanure Ltd for GBP1.4 million.
The struggling value butcher said that the sale secured continued employment for around 240 employees of the group.
At the beginning of November, Crawshaw started seeking buyers after appointing administrators, closing stores and cutting staff numbers.
It said it was entering administration after "several years of financial losses and the unsuccessful attempt to raise the additional investment required to fund a restructuring plan".
On Monday, the butcher said that during the sale process more that 50 parties expressed interest in the company, with Loughanure, a newly-formed company owned by Thomas Cribbin of Cribbin Family Butchers Holdings Ltd, coming on top with its GBP1.4 million bid.
"The sale has resulted in substantially all of the group's realisable assets being sold and the group has ceased to trade. The trade of the business will now be continued by Loughanure," Crawshaw added.
Crawshaw operated 54 stores across the UK. At the beginning on November it closed 35, with the remaining 19 having now been acquired by Loughanure.
The group's only remaining assets are a long leasehold property in Grimsby, short leasehold interests in closed stores, surplus store equipment and a number of vehicles, which the administrators are currently marketing.
Crawshaw shares remain suspended from trading on AIM. They were suspended at the end of October when it appointed Robert Kelly and Charles King from Ernst & Young LLP as joint administrators.