Furniture manufacturer Aspen Furniture suffered a decline in turnover in the build up to its collapse.

Rochelle Schofield and Andrew Knowles, both of Leonard Curtis, were appointed as joint administrators of Aspen Furniture Ltd on 15 November 2024.

Ahead of entering administration, the company saw a significant decline in sales from January 2024 (historically, turnover had been around £1m for the past few years), which in part was due to the cost-of-living crisis whereby consumers are cutting back on luxury spending.

Sales for the three-month period from 1 February to 30 April 2024 reached £243,000 while losses stood at £9,000. This represented a 26% decline in turnover compared to the previous three-month period.

The business experienced cashflow issues and had fallen into arrears with the HMRC. This worsened with mounting debts and further cashflow struggles, with the HMRC advising that a looming Notice of Enforcement would be served to collect an outstanding sum of £269,000. A trade creditor also issued a similar enforcement action for sum of £11,000.

Upon entering administration, the business was marketed for sale during November 2024, which generated six expressions of interest. One offer was received from an unconnected part for certain assets, while another was filed from a connected party, Bespoke Interiors of Cheshire Ltd, a newco incorporated on 2 August 2024.

A sale to Bespoke Interiors of Cheshire Ltd was completed on 15 November 2024 for a total of £50,000, with £10,000 paid on completion. A further eight payments of £5,000 running up to July 2025 formed the structure of the deal. All 20 jobs were secured.

As for unsecured creditors, a total sum of £99,000 is owed, which includes £65,000 to the trade, £15,000 as a Bounce Back Loan and over £7,000 as a director’s loan. Creditors are expected to suffer a shortfall of £306,000.