Mon, 15 May 2017 | ADMINISTRATION
Cycling clothing retailer Vulpine Performance is heading for administration, with the appointment of RSM anticipated.
Vulpine was established by former film maker Nick Hussey in 2010, with the aim of creating a brand for casual cyclists. It raised over £1 million on crowdfunding platform Crowdcube in October 2015, and collaborated with Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy.
Troubles were brewing when Mr Hussey spent large sums of cash on marketing, with the company tending to purchase stock in bulk then resorting to discount it heavily to sell it, damaging the brand’s appeal to consumers. Late deliveries from Chinese factories was a further issue.
Further money raising efforts saw Vulpine use the cash too quickly, and it missed its sales targets. Last month it attempted to raise another £750,000, at a £7.5 million valuation, but was unsuccessful, and called in the administrators.
One of its funders, Simon Hulme, an investor in start-ups said: “Vulpine had failed abysmally to deliver what it had promised investors in the first round. To me, crowdfunding looks like a ticking timebomb.”
There are concerns, now, that around 600 shareholders are at risk of losing their investment.
Hussey said in a statement to shareholders the latest crowdfunding effort had been abandoned to seek a buyer. Saying: “Whilst there was strong recognition of the brand, and initial verbal interest, none have produced offers or ongoing due diligence, and communication has stopped. It is highly possible that, having seen our precarious financial position and the complications of doing a fast enough deal, they are waiting to pick the business up in administration instead, if any deal is to be done."
Businesses in adminstration
Subscribe to Business Sale Report
The wholesale business has an established trading history and has built up a strong reputation and a loyal customer base. Business is drawn from a wide demographic of clients with a good spread across different business sectors.
This is a unique opportunity to acquire a company specialising in luxury performance cycle clothing, utilising the finest specialist fabrics and cutting-edge construction techniques.
A leading internet-based provider of customisable and curated beauty box services. Over the last decade, the business has evolved from a premier subscription service to a leading internet-based provider of highly attractive and rapidly expanding beau...
WEB-BASED
11
|
Jul
|
Holiday letting agency acquires Cornish self-catering holiday specialist | BUSINESS SALE
Travel Chapter, a leading UK holiday letting agency, has ann...
11
|
Jul
|
Power services firm set to be acquired by US energy resilience group | BUSINESS SALE
The Wilmott Group Limited, a power services group with opera...
11
|
Jul
|
Dunfermline vehicle manufacturing services firm enters administration | ADMINISTRATION
A specialist manufacturing business based in Dunfermline has...
Business Sale Report is your complete solution to finding great acquisition opportunities.
Join today to receive:
All this and much more, including the latest M&A news and exclusive resources
We can help you capitalise on insolvent businesses. We list UK businesses in administration, liquidation and with winding up petitions daily. Ensuring our members never miss out on an opportunity
Please choose your settings for this site below. For more information please read our Cookie Policy
These cookies are necessary for our website to function properly and provide you with access to all features.
These are analytics cookies that help us to improve the way our website works.
These are used to improve the functional performance of the website and make it easier for you to use.