News
Here you can find CAPA’s latest appointments to undertake forensic audits, as well as instructions for property services from a range of blue-chip clients including retailers, insolvency practitioners, leisure operators, banks and venture capitalists.
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PwC appoints CAPA on furniture and beds retailers
Find out moreThe administrators of Bensons for Beds and Harveys furniture stores have instructed CAPA’s audit and property divisions to help them save and recover cash through the restructuring process.
CAPA’s audit team will undertake full property and accounts payable audits across both companies, while the property team holds negotiations with landlords to agree temporary occupational terms on Harveys stores, as PwC markets the business.
The two retailers were part of a group which had been posting revenues of more than £600m, but they had this year faced severe trading conditions which affected Harveys in particular. This resulted in cash flow pressures, exacerbated by the effects of coronavirus on the supply chain and customer sales.
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CAPA appointed on Café Rouge and Bella Italia restaurants
Find out moreThe administrators of Café Rouge and Bella Italia have appointed CAPA to conduct full audits on more than 250 restaurants and properties occupied by the chains.
CAPA will be undertaking a large-scale audit of accounts payable data across the company, as well as audits of all property costs throughout each of the restaurants, after the business recovery firm AlixPartners was appointed to the chains’ owner, Casual Dining Group.
This marks the latest of CAPA’s many appointments to audit dining chains with sites around the country, after the Audit team was recently instructed on The Handmade Burger Co, and WrapChic, and others during the past year.
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CAPA appointed on another casualty in casual dining market
Find out moreThe administrators of The Handmade Burger Co. have appointed CAPA to audit the business, as over-capacity across the casual dining sector triggered another insolvency.
Leonard Curtis Business Rescue & Recovery has instructed CAPA to undertake a rates audit at nearly 20 properties the restaurant chain traded from and occupied, after the company entered administration.
After a significantly challenging trading period of around four years for most restaurant operators, The Handmade Burger Co. suffered particularly due to over-capacity across the market, leading to a halving of sales during 2019 compared to previous years, and a withdrawal of support from a secured creditor.
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CAPA appointed on fusion fast food franchise
Find out moreThe liquidators of a popular fast food chain that operated nationwide have appointed CAPA to audit the business.
CAPA will be conducting a rates audit of sites at Wrapchic, which specialised in melding Mexican dishes with Indian ingredients. The franchise operated from outlets in high streets and shopping centres around the country, with a strong presence in the midlands, Yorkshire and London.
While it had traded at one point as a successful chain, the company’s financial problems stemmed from the fact that leases on 14 premises it operated from were in the company’s own name – not the franchisees who ran them.
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CAPA to audit nearly 150 sites for fashion retailer
Find out moreA national men’s and women’s fashion retailer has instructed CAPA to undertake a widescale audit of its stores and invoices, as the firm seeks savings across the entire business.
The Original Factory Shop, which has been trading since the late 1960s, has appointed CAPA to conduct a full property and accounts payable audit as the business looks to generate savings during the lockdown.
The retailer sells major fashion brands including Jimmy Choo and Calvin Klein, as well as sportswear including Nike, Adidas and Slazenger, with significant discounts. While it has been preparing safer shopping experiences for customers and donating £50,000 of goods to the NHS and care homes, the business has sought CAPA’s help to conserve more cash.
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CAPA appointed on major building contractor
Find out moreAdministrators of one of the north west’s largest building contractors have appointed CAPA to audit properties across the business.
Corporate restructuring and advisory firm Grant Thornton has appointed CAPA to audit sites occupied by Pochin Construction Ltd – a contractor that entered insolvency last year after experiencing serious financial problems stemming from residential building contracts.
Pochin was one of several firms within a construction and property development group, established more than 80 years ago. The group delivered projects around the north west and at its peak, was posting £60m in turnover.
But into the first half of last year, the company faced financial distress due to a legacy residential contract. The business also experienced challenges in securing bridging financing and trying to secure new contracts. Eventually Sarah O’Toole and Jason Bell of Grant Thornton were appointed administrators in August 2019.
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CAPA to sponsor TRI Awards for 13th consecutive year
Find out moreAs a lifelong supporter of the business rescue profession, CAPA has once again signed up as headline sponsor of the Turnaround, Restructuring & Insolvency (TRI) Awards 2020.
2020 marks the 13th year in succession that CAPA has been headline sponsor of the awards, which recognise the individuals, teams and companies who are best in class in the turnaround and restructuring arena.
Those championed through the awards are responsible for saving tens of thousands of jobs, by rescuing hundreds of companies each year.
At the 2019 ceremony last year, CAPA welcomed guests with an opening speech, before presenting two of the most prestigious categories of the night - Corporate Rescue of the Year (Large) and Insolvency Team of the Year, which were both won by EY UK Restructuring.
The independent judging panel for the TRI Awards is drawn from leaders across the UK’s largest insolvency and restructuring firms, turnaround specialists, international restructuring practices, law firms, regulators and service providers. More information can be found on the TRI Awards website.
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CAPA announced as main sponsor of R3 Annual Conference
Find out moreCAPA will be the main sponsor of this year’s R3 Annual Conference, as the trade association for insolvency and restructuring professionals marks its 30th year.
Due to be held at De Vere Beaumont Estate Windsor between May 13 and 15, the R3 Annual Conference will feature three days of cutting-edge technical content, thought leadership and networking. RAF pilot Mandy Hickson has recently been announced as a keynote speaker and will explain to guests how she’s overcome various challenges in her flying career.
Around 200 conference delegates will be at the venue – which boasts 400 modern and luxury suites, a state-of the-art conference village and 44 acres of grounds featuring commissioned sculptures and natural ponds close to the River Thames.
This year, the first 150 conference tickets sold will come with a complimentary ticket on R3’s River Cruise on the evening of Wednesday May 13. This will be a 90-minute trip on the Queen of the Thames, the largest boat on the Upper Thames, into Windsor.
More information on the conference can be found on R3’s website.
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CAPA appointed on UK’s largest popcorn maker
Find out moreThe administrators of a popcorn manufacturer that supplied 90% of the UK’s cinema industry have instructed CAPA to audit the business.
CAPA will be conducting a rates audit at Thomas Tucker, a Nottinghamshire-based independent provider of snacks to supermarkets as well as cinema chains across the entire country, after it entered insolvency.
The company, which traded under the Tommy Tucker brand and employed more than 100 staff, had been a well-known business having supplied cinemas for nearly 30 years. In the year leading up to September 2019, the business had been suffering financial difficulties for various reasons, including a product recall.
Ultimately, Adam Harris and Patrick Lannagan, of the insolvency and business recovery firm Mazars, were appointed joint administrators of the company on September 23 2019.
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CAPA expands ratings division with new hires
Find out moreCAPA has announced two new senior hires in its growing Ratings division, as the property and audit consultancy ramps up its support for retailers and the turnaround and restructuring profession.
Charted surveyor Susan D’Arcy has joined CAPA as a rating consultant, bringing a wealth of experience having worked for a national property consultancy for 12 years. Prior to this role, she spent 16 years as a senior surveyor at the Valuation Office Agency.
Susan will play a key role within a team managing rating appeals and audits for more than 30 retailers at present. The Ratings division is also involved in many high-profile administrations and turnarounds for a variety of commercial occupiers throughout the UK.
Nicola Connell will also take a leading role in driving CAPA’s audit services for retailers. Nicola brings nearly 25 years of experience, having worked for the past 20 years with national rating practices.
She will also be working on CAPA’s increasing support for turnaround, restructuring and insolvency practitioners on large administrations and turnarounds for commercial property occupiers.
Susan can be contacted on:
SusanD@capa.uk.com
07367661167
https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-d-arcy-bsc-mrics-889178116/
Nicola can be contacted on:
nicola@capa.uk.com
07872384306