Surrey-based Victoria Printing Works, which traded as Jaggerprint, appointed Gareth Roberts and Rob Keyes of Reading-based KRE Corporate Recovery as liquidators on 27 September 2016. Soon afterwards KRE appointed Richard Birch & Co to help sell the assets. Following a protracted sale process, Higgs Group bought some of the assets and one of the Victoria Printing Works premises on Richmond Road, Kingston upon Thames.
Victoria Printing Works traded from three addresses on Richmond Road, two were leased and one, home to Jaggerprint Digital, was owned by the business. It is this property that Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire-based Higgs has acquired as part of the deal.
The two remaining buildings were returned to the leaseholder and the remaining Victoria Printing Works assets will now be auctioned or scrapped.
All of Jaggerprint’s circa-six staff were made redundant last year, following the appointment of KRE. However, Higgs managing director Nigel White said there was a possibility some could be offered roles when the new business opens.
White said: “We’re excited because this is extending our footprint from where we are in Henley. The business [Jaggerprint] was in operation for around 60 years or more so it’s obviously had a good following in Kingston upon Thames over the years and we would like to be able to pick up some of that business.”
Higgs purchased a five-colour Speedmaster PM 52, along with a further two-colour Heidelberg press, a Polar guillotine and various other items of finishing equipment. Some of the kit will remain in the Jaggeprint premises and some will be moved over to Higgs’ main site in Henley.
Higgs is yet to determine whether it will change the branding of the newly acquired premises or if it will remain as Jaggerprint.
Keyes said Jaggerprint had been going “for a long, long time” but a reduction in turnover combined with a high level of fixed overheads, mainly staff, put a squeeze on cashflow.
“They came to the inevitable conclusion that when there’s more money going out than coming in, it’s inevitable that there’s a time to take some sort of action,” he added.
Jaggerprint also ran two other Heidelberg litho presses, a Canon imagePress C7000VP, a Heidelberg Platen and a range of finishing kit.
According to its statement of affairs dated 27 September, Victoria Printing Works listed a surplus/deficit to preferential creditors of £159,986 and £274,684 to non-preferential creditors, with book debts of £52,000. Total deficiency/surplus as regards members was £202,698. By far its highest-owed creditor was HMRC, at just shy of £50,000.
Founded in 1877, 49-staff Higgs publishes and prints the Henley Standard newspaper and Henley Life magazine, along with offering a range of commercial print services and selling stationery. It runs Speedmasters and various other items of finishing equipment.
