Advice

At Geoffrey Martin & Co our first aim, where possible, is always to avoid an insolvency process – although sometimes such a process is desirable. We therefore offer a number of non-insolvency options, including:

Independent Business Reviews

Where a business is in financial difficulty, is under-performing or facing other challenges, we offer a Business Review for either third party stakeholders or the management of the business.

The Review is intended to highlight steps which can be taken to address issues affecting the business and provide a clear evaluation of all available options.

Informal Arrangement

It is often possible to negotiate an informal settlement with creditors that will restore a company to solvency. This clearly depends on individual circumstances and creditors will need to be offered more than they could reasonably expect to receive following a Liquidation or other insolvency process.

Where appropriate, we are able to liaise with creditors and other stakeholders and provide relevant information in a way that allows them to determine that such an arrangement is in their best interests.

Advising Purchasers

Purchasers often favour acquiring a business through a formal insolvency process, generally Administration or a Company Voluntary Arrangement, to negate the need for costly and time consuming due diligence.

An acquisition in this form also eliminates any uncertainty as to what is being acquired as there is no prospect of any unforeseen liabilities being discovered.

For further information please refer to the article on Acquiring Insolvent Businesses in the Bulletin’s section.

Turnaround, Restructure and Refinance

Parts of a company's business may be unprofitable and insolvency may be avoided by shedding such parts. We are able to provide a comprehensive Business Review, which will highlight such issues and make detailed recommendations for the way forward. In this respect we will work with the company's management, financiers and other stakeholders if it is possible to formulate a solution to return the company to profitability.

Strategy/Plan B

A very important part of any planning exercise is what to do if the optimum way forward is not agreeable to all stakeholders.

This is also vital as it allows those same stakeholders to understand the alternatives and therefore facilitates their making an informed decision about their investment / debt / future involvement with a business.

As a result, when giving advice we use Plan B as a comparative to demonstrate why Plan A is desirable and what the consequences of it not being accepted are likely to be.

This generally focuses minds on the key issues rather than the peripherals.

Whatever your requirements Geoffrey Martin & Co specialise in providing bespoke reviews and solutions to tailor to your company’s specific needs. In difficult times our pragmatic and sensitive approach can help focus management on the key issues hindering a business’s success and provide a feasible solution to put it back on the track to profitability. Should you require any further information or wish to discuss any of the services we provide in this area please do not hesitate to contact either John Twizell in our Leeds office or James Sleight in our London office.