A listed manufacturing business dedicated to constructing green alternatives to hardwood and other traditional floor boarding methods has been placed in voluntary administration.
The collapse comes as the building industry continues to suffer, with some of the worst results for new home sales in nearly two decades – although experts say the latest interest rate cut is sure to give businesses a boost.
Style Limited announced to the market late last week it had appointed Gess Michael Rambaldi and Andrew Reginald Yeo of Pitcher Partners to the company as administrators.
Pitcher Partners was contacted by SmartCompany this morning, but a reply was not available prior to publication. Style Limited itself was also contacted, but referred to Pitcher Partners.
Style Limited, founded in 2004, focuses on green alternatives for floor boarding, but had also been experimenting with new manufacturing methods. It had worked with Flinders University in a Government-backed research program to develop a new cheap method of strand-woven manufacturing.
This allowed the company to exit fully-owned manufacturing in China through a new joint venture. “The newly developed international manufacturing cell will allow for geographic expansion,” chief financial officer Paul Smith said in the company’s most recent report.
The business raised $2.1 million in capital, and achieved revenue growth of over 7% due to expansion in the United States.
However, the company’s shares were put in a trading halt last month. Shortly afterwards, it made an announcement regarding ongoing discussions about the company’s finances – it ran into trouble while attempting to formalise a $1.3 million loan.
The planned contribution from an overseas lender hadn’t been fulfilled, according to the company, and it began the process of securing alternative financing. Chief executive Paul Smith even said the company had proceeded with legal action against the tender.
While the company’s headquarters are in Melbourne, it has a manufacturing base in China and sales offices in the United States, Europe, and South Africa.
Administrators have put out an expression of interest for either assets of the company, or a recapitalisation plan.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
