According to filings on The Gazette, Kevin Ley and Adam Henry Stephens of Evelyn Partners were appointed as liquidators of Ancient House Press Ltd on 23 January.
Two notices of removal of liquidator by creditors filings with a signature date of 27 January went live on Companies House this week, confirming the removal of previous liquidators Lee De’ath and Tom Gardiner of Begbies Traynor (Central) in Colchester.
The reason given for their removal was stated as a “decision of creditors during physical meeting held on 23 January 2025”.
In a statement received today (31 January), the new joint liquidators from Evelyn Partners told Printweek: “At a meeting of creditors convened on January 23rd 2025, the requisite majority of creditors resolved to appoint Kevin Ley and Adam Stephens of Evelyn Partners LLP as joint liquidators of Ancient House Press Ltd.
“The liquidators are in the process of writing to all creditors confirming their appointment and to former employees of the business to enable the progression of their claims with the Redundancy Payments Service.
“The liquidators have a duty to thoroughly investigate the reasons for the failure of the business and would encourage creditors to get in touch in relation to their claims together with any matters they feel should be brought to their attention.”
Ancient House Press entered liquidation on 14 January, only a month after its owner told Printweek that the business was undergoing a corporate restructure. Claims that the company would reopen after Christmas proved to be incorrect.
One former Ancient House employee told Printweek they were relieved to have received a case number earlier this week “so we can now start our redundancy claim nearly six weeks after we were sent home”.
The statement of affairs put together by Begbies Traynor, which was filed at Companies House earlier this month, revealed Ancient House had an estimated deficiency of more than £4.6m, with trade creditors owed over £2.5m.
The failure of the business had been attributed by a spokesperson for Ancient House to a “steady decline in sales” that resulted in the company experiencing “significant financial challenges” that placed “significant pressure” on trading operations, “meaning the business was no longer viable”.
There was uncertainty in Begbies Traynor’s report over the realisation of various assets subject to floating charge, including stock, fixtures and fittings, a VAT refund of over £150,000, nearly £1.12m attributed to RDCP Group Ltd, which acquired Ancient House Printing Group in 2021, and £4.07m attributed to holding company AHP Print Holdings Ltd.
In its most recently filed full accounts at Companies House, made up to 28 February 2023, sales at Ancient House Press Ltd were up by nearly 27% to £16.32m.
