The Bristol-based litho, digital and wide-format supplies business, was placed in administration on 30 September after racking up losses of £52,796 in the five months to 30 April, according to management accounts for the period.

In addition, the company was more than £300,000 in arrears with HMRC, including a £254,836 VAT liability and £51,610 in respect of PAYE/NIC, and was under threat of a petition to wind up at the time that it filed its notice of intent to appoint administrators.

According to administrators FRP Advisory, the bulk of the companies assets are in the form of its sales ledger, which had a balance at the date of FRP's appointment of £949,196 - although £408,992 of this was owed to Barclays Sales Finance.

Barclays was also owed £33,975 in relation to the company's overdraft facility, while preferential creditors - being employees arrears of pay and holiday pay - totalled £37,000.

According to the summary of liabilities, FRP estimates a surplus from the company's assets after payment to secured and preferential creditors of £109,423, which is dwarfed by the £1.3m owed to unsecured creditors.

This includes £818,360 owed to trade creditors, £306,446 owed to HMRC, £7,315 to the directors' loan account, and £156,717 in unsecured employee claims - in relation to redundancy pay and pay in lieu of notice.

Avon's top five print creditors contributed more than 70% of the company's trade debt and included: Fujifilm (£283,554); Agfa (£152,152); Canon (£76,700); Stehlin Hostag Ink (£52,614); and BTC Europe (£18,744).

FRP Advisory sold Avon's assets, including intellectual property rights, equipment and stock, to Service Offset Supplies (SOS) for a total of £44,000 on 9 October. Under the terms of the sale SOS indemnified FRP in respect of all outstanding Retention of Title claims.