Hi all,
This is just a quick update, as I'm pretty worn out. Sadly,
despite all our (and your) best efforts, we went into liqudation
yesterday. We weren't able to warn people this was going to happen, as
it came about very quickly (within a few days) and we were strongly
advised against telling anyone in case the landlords got wind of it
and came in and seized all the goods, leaving us with nothing to try
and pay things off. As it happens, it seems most of our suppliers
won't really get anything paid off what we owe them, which to us, as
individuals running an ethical business, feels like the worst thing
ever. I can't tell you how awful this makes me feel and if I ever come
into money then I will pay off every penny personally. These are other
ethical companies who have been very good to us, and many of whom have
individuals we know, respect and like within them, and we are closing
owing them (sometimes fairly substantial amounts of) money. This could
have a knock on effect on some of their businesses. It's just
horrible.
There are so many levels this is such a shame on, for everyone
involved (us, the suppliers and you, the customers and friends, the
co-operative movement as a whole), but it had reached the point where,
despite all the massive effort we'd put into it, the business just
wasn't sustainable any more without a large injection of capital. As
many of you know, we'd been trying to get a loan (we'd already
received the £6000 grant from United Co-ops and £895 from Tangram
Housing Co-op, which they specified we use on members' wages, happily
for us, as Jim and myself had been delaying wages for several months
to try and stock the shop, and we're very grateful indeed for these).
We were waiting to get two years worth of accounts signed off before
we could apply for the loan. Our accountant came out at the start of
June and audited us for 2005's accounts, but they then decided they
wanted paying for that year before they'd do 2006's accounts. This was
understandable, as they obviously saw the state of the finances. We
didn't have a chance of paying this, and it kind of felt like the
death blow to us, as it would mean the loan would take even longer, if
indeed we even got it, and we were honestly struggling so much to try
and keep the shop stocked, as those of you who've been in lately will
have seen (we've been paying cash on delivery for practically
everything, which has made things increasingly difficult). Jim and I
could only keep on working such long hours for no money (or a reduced
wage) for a limited amount of time, and none of us really felt we
could see a way out of it. We had all got quite despondent and it's
been very hard to keep going throughout all of this, despite how much
we love Beano and want it to exist. Some of us are just so worn out,
as the last few months have really taken their toll, emotionally,
physically and mentally. And then we were advised that we really
shouldn't keep trading in the situation we were in, as we could get in
trouble personally if things kept getting worse, so this is why it's
all happened so quickly.
However, there may be some light at the end of the tunnel. Jim and
I had a meeting tonight with two people who are interested in buying
the assets (i.e. stock and fixtures and fittings) and keeping the
place open. This would mean that it would no longer be a workers'
co-op (which makes me really sad), but at least the shop would still
be going, and run along all the same ethical principles as before,
just with a bit more money and business expertise behind it. The
potential buyers would want to keep staff on and keep the shop running
very similarly to before, just with improvements. However, they
wouldn't be able to invest enough to take on the debt, so that would
still leave us in an awful position with suppliers, but we feel that
if we could at least give them continued trade, with the added
security of having some money behind us to put into and develop the
business (which is what it has needed all along since we've moved, and
is why it's failed without that), then at least they would be able to
recoup some of their losses over time. This really is the best case
scenario, for us, our creditors and you all, and we don't yet know if
it will work out, but we're hopeful. The meeting today went well and
they seemed to like our business plan and trust us, but we won't know
any more until early next week.
I'll keep everyone informed with updates via this group (although
there are a lot of names in the Beano suggestion book that I need to
add to the list and I will try and do that this weekend, in between
getting all the accounts fully up to date for either the liquidators,
or the buyers, depending on what happens). I want to thank all of you
for all the time, money, goodwill and love you've all given to Beano
and those of us who work there, and let you know how much we
appreciate you. If we've looked a little fed up or been a bit less
smiley lately, you now know why. I'm so sorry about all of this, as I
know what a disappointment it must be to many of you, and it's
wonderful to know that so many people care about Beano as much as I
do, but let's stay hopeful that we can stay open, albeit in a form we
may not have chosen, but one that we can still do a lot of good things
with.
Well, so much for that being a short email! I'll be in touch soon.
Hope everyone is well.
Simone (and all at Beano)
P.S. I'm sorry if I haven't been in touch with some of you personally,
but it's just been such a whirlwind few days and I've been working so
many hours. Also, my head is like mush from all the emotion, so it's
sometimes been too hard to talk about. But I'll be in touch with those
of you I know personally very soon. Once again, thanks for all your
support.
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