I've been reading through the Butler & Tanner Printers creditors' list, and it hasn't been an enjoyable read. Horribly compelling, yes, and somewhat akin to rubbernecking at the scene of a bad accident. There's no doubt the £6.4m owed to trade creditors is going to hurt a lot of people in this industry. Within that the amount owed to paper suppliers is north of £2.6m, and we'd already been warned prior to all of this that merchants are going to find it increasingly difficult to get credit cover. So the knock-on effect of this hit will ultimately be felt by printers up and down the country.

While it's easy to focus on the eye-watering six-figure debts owed to some of the industry's largest suppliers, I wonder whether some of the [comparatively] more minor amounts will end up doing greater damage long-term. My quick back of an envelope calculations show that B&T's trade finishing suppliers, for example, are owed getting on for £150,000. There are small companies here for whom a bad debt of five, ten or fifteen thousand pounds will be a major hit. It could wipe out this year's profits, it could mean planned investment or expansion has to be curtailed, and for some it could be a fatal blow.

Creditors' lists such as this should be required reading for managing directors, sales directors, and credit control departments up and down the country because the other illuminating figures contained therein are for those suppliers who aren't owed any money. Hats off to the people running those companies, as they will have taken difficult and no doubt unpopular decisions not to trade with the old B&T, or to do so only on the most stringent of payment terms. They put on their safety belts before journeying. Simple edicts often make the most sense, and here's one to take away from the B&T debacle: "don't chase turnover, make sure you're paid."