An Aberdeen printing and marketing business has been sold out of administration, saving all 22 jobs.
Jasmine Limited has been sold in a pre-pack administration deal to PFI Group. The new Manchester-based owner has said they intend to continue operating the business in Aberdeen.
Danny Cowie, 45, a director of the collapsed company’s parent firm, Jasmine Holdings, said that James Aiken Engineering Solutions, which also is also part of the group, was not affected by the transaction and “continues to trade well”. He added that another firm he leads, sports fundraising company Fantastic Fanatics, was also unaffected.
Barry Stewart and George Lafferty, of Leonard Curtis Business Solutions Group (LCBSG), were appointed joint administrators of the troubled company earlier today.
In a statement they said Jasmine had been “struggling in a difficult industry for several years”.
Insolvency was “unavoidable”
The administrators said: “The traditional printing sector had been under consistent pressure with many companies opting for non-print digital solutions which posed a real competitive threat.
“The business also relied on clients from the oil and gas sector, itself undergoing struggles in Aberdeen in recent years. Directors were trying to manage all these pressures when the pandemic hit in March 2020.”
Mr Stewart added: “It took far longer than anticipated to increase sales and over the period of the pandemic – despite government support – ongoing losses meant funding facilities were exhausted.”
The company added that Jasmine’s parent company had also propped up the business financially “over a considerable period” as directors attempted to implement a turnaround, but that “insolvency was unavoidable” and the business was marketed for sale.
The administrators said they used intellectual property asset valuation specialists Hilco Streambank and its own database of potential buyers to market the business to as wide and relevant an audience as possible.
Mr Stewart added: “We are pleased to say that this resulted in a number of competing bids for a going concern sale which maximised realisations for creditors whilst protecting all the jobs.”
A “great outcome”
Mr Cowie welcomed the deal.
He said: “This has been a great outcome for us. We had a good underlying business with a loyal workforce. We are very happy that everyone’s jobs could be saved and that production looks likely to remain in Aberdeen.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the other main business within the Jasmine Holdings group, James Aiken Engineering Solutions, is unaffected by this news and continues to trade well. Equally, Fantastic Fanatics is also unaffected as it is a totally separate entity.”
Manchester firm takes ‘dominant’ position
Darren McMurray, chief executive of new owner, PFI Group said: “The acquisition of the Jasmine business further enhances our dominant position in the print and signage marketplace and aligns with our buy and build strategy for acquiring businesses that we are able to leverage with our diverse customer base.
“It is a pleasure to welcome the Jasmine team to the PFI family and to be able to turn the difficult situation they faced to a positive outcome.”
A pre-pack administration is an insolvency procedure where a company arranges a deal to sell its assets to a buyer before appointing administrators to facilitate the sale.
