Background

OM Realisations 2020 Ltd traded previously as Onwatch Multifire, an established UK business providing installation and maintenance services for CCTV and fire prevention systems. However, the business had been underperforming and had built up significant arrears with HMRC, as well as unpaid group loans.

Other companies in the group were unwilling to provide continued financial support, so FRP was approached by the company, and engaged to find a purchaser for the business via a pre-packaged sale in administration.

Action

FRP was appointed as Administrators of the business and began to run an accelerated sales process; the sale of the business as two separate entities – one focused on security, the other on fire prevention – had been agreed prior to our appointment.

Our Restructuring Advisory team undertook a comprehensive process to identify potential purchasers for the business and implemented a marketing campaign via a confidential information sharing platform, to enable interested parties to undertake due diligence.

The team worked closely with the management team to respond to all interested parties in a timely manner, providing regular updates to all major creditors. We also carried out a detailed assessment of the company’s lease obligations and instructed an external agent to carry out an independent valuation of the assets to identify avenues of further recovery.

Outcome

Our team were able to secure the successful sale of the business as a going concern through two separate transactions in the security and fire sectors. This represented a substantially better outcome than would have been achieved if the business had not been sold on a going concern basis. The sale also ensured continuity of service for Onwatch Multifire’s customers, as well as preserving 58 jobs across the two new trading divisions.