Top Billingsgate fish traders go into Administration
ONE of the biggest fish suppliers in London’s Billingsgate Market with a �65 million turnover has gone into administration, it has emerged today. Administrators have gone into the offices and distribution depot of Seatek UK and are going through the books
ONE of the biggest fish suppliers in London’s Billingsgate Market with a �65 million turnover has gone into administration, it has emerged today.
Administrators have gone into the offices and distribution depot of Seatek UK and are going through the books.
The 65 staff were given the news at a special meeting at the plant and handed letters about the future of the company. Most are thought to be living in East London and Essex.
It was not due to market forces as the company, part of a group of four, appears to be trading well, it is understood.
“We are not sure what happened,” an MCR insolvency practitioners’ spokesman told the East London Advertiser.
“So our administrators have gone in this week to sort it out. It’s too early at this stage to discuss jobs.”
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Seatek runs a one stop shop’ operation for the wholesale and catering trades with sales offices around the country. It looks after the whole supply process from buying the catches at the quayside through to storage, distribution and delivery to restaurants, fishmongers and fish’n’chip shops.
Two senior partners at MCR, Jason Godefroy and Andrew Stoneman, were appointed Administrators of Seatek (UK) Ltd, along with two other companies in the group, Oriental Delight Foodservice and Vision Seafoods both in Redditch, where another 39 staff work.
Jason Godefroy said: “It is too early to identify the reason why these companies fell into Administration as it does appear to be specific to the company and not adverse market conditions.
“But we are still trading and want to identify a buyer as the underlying business is profitable.”
The fourth company in the group, Evergreen food services in Co Kildare, in Southern Ireland, has actually gone into receivership, MCR confirmed, with the loss of 46 jobs.
All four companies are part of the British Seafood international food group, which went into Administration last week with Deloitte’s.
