Blair Nimmo, partner, and Alistair McAlinden, director at KPMG, have been appointed as joint administrators of First Furnishings Ltd (FFL) which has ceased trading with the loss of more than 50 jobs following financial difficulties
Established in 2004, FFL supplied and installed furniture, flooring and white goods to local authorities, housing associations, letting agents and charities. The company operated from leased head office and warehouse premises in Broxburn, West Lothian and leased warehouse premises in Glasgow.
The company generated a turnover of £5.8m in the year to 31 March 2018, with the majority of revenue relating to contracts with local authorities. However, despite significant income growth in recent years, an increased cost base, coupled with contractual obligations, forced FFL to incur substantial losses.
The firm employed 57 employees; 27 at its base in Broxburn and 30 in Glasgow, all of whom have been made redundant.
Blair Nimmo, joint administrator and global head of restructuring for KPMG, said: ‘Unfortunately, while FFL was a leading operator in its field, the business was unable to continue trading in light of an increasing cost base, which, combined with contractual obligations, gave rise to acute cash flow difficulties.
‘As a result of the difficult financial position facing the company, we had no choice but to make all employees redundant. We will be working with affected employees and relevant government agencies to ensure a full range of support is available.
‘We are also exploring the possibility of securing a sale of the company’s business and assets and would encourage any interested parties to contact us as soon as possible.’
Report by Pat Sweet
