A rival business supplies company has saved more than 600 jobs by acquiring Wakefield-based Complete Business Solutions out of administration.
The yet undisclosed deal sees a subsidiary of Sheffield's EVO Business Supplies Limited take control of the business which provides general stationery and office supplies, IT and tech support, photocopier and printing supplies, workspace equipment and installation, and PPE and workwear. Loss-making Complete Business Solutions operates from 18 distribution hubs around the UK, including hubs in Scotland, Wales, the North East, Yorkshire, the North West, the Midlands, the South East, the South West and London.
In the latest set of accounts filed at Companies House for Complete Business Solutions, to December 27 2020, the firm reported an operating loss of more than £489,000 on turnover of £71.4m. In the accounts, directors talked of "short term profitability issues" caused by Covid and said forecasted sales would not recover to pre-lockdown levels until September last year.
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The firm had already made redundancies - reducing its workforce by 35% - and closed 13 sites in a bid to protect itself against what it called an "extremely challenging" market. In February 2022 it also refinanced its bank debt obligations using the Government's Recovery Loan Scheme.
Joint administrators Tim Vance, John Sumpton and Sam Woodward of EY Parthenon’s Restructuring team were appointed this week with a deal subsequently struck with the subsidiary of Evo. EY's team were advised by Emma Sadler of Addleshaw Goddard’s Leeds Restructuring Team.
Tim Vance, joint administrator at EY Parthenon, said: "CBS is one of the UK’s leading providers of business supplies and services, but the long-term impact of the pandemic lockdowns and subsequent change in working habits has created significant headwinds for the business and impacted revenue and cashflow. We are pleased to announce the preservation of the entire business following its sale to EVO, along with the retention of all employees."
Andrew Gale, CEO of EVO said: "We have worked with Complete Business Solutions for many years and are pleased to have delivered a solution that safeguards the business and saves over 600 jobs."
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