Mobile phone supplier and recycler goes into administration

Mobile phone refurbishment company Redeem UK has gone into administration. The firm, which also operates the Envirofone brand and has operations in Dubai, Estonia, Spain and Sweden, has appointed Chris Pole and Rick Harrison of KPMG as joint administrators.

The administrators say they have been tasked with “taking steps to wind these businesses down” and will be seeking a buyer for the Spanish buyer. 118 of Redeem’s 130 staff have been made redundant, with the remainder retained to assist in shutting the business down.

Joint administrator and KPMG partner Chris Pole said: "Like many businesses, Redeem Group has been severely impacted by COVID-19 and the business has been in hibernation since March.”

"The directors had been working with customers and stakeholders to secure new funding into the business to support a reopening, but, unfortunately, this has not been possible and has led the directors to take the difficult decision of placing the company into administration.”

Redeem specialises in refurbishing and reselling old mobile phones and devices. Its business grew in recent years as new devices became more expensive and consumers became more environmentally conscious. Redeem worked with providers O2 and Three on trade-in and recycle services, as well as serving consumers directly through Envirofone.

However, the company has suspended operations since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, with all employees furloughed through the government’s job retention scheme.

In its most recent accounts, to the 18 months ending September 30 2018, Redeem UK Ltd registered revenue of over £82 million, with an operating loss of £1.1 million. At the time, the company’s total assets were valued at around £11.3 million, with total liabilities standing at £8.6 million.

Chris Pole added: "All affected staff have been informed and we will provide the assistance they need to make the relevant claims. We'd like to thank all employees for the support, service and Co-operation they have provided to the company, both before and during the administration.

"Our focus over the coming days is to realise the remaining assets and find a purchaser for the Group's Spanish business."


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