The publishing wing of Rosemary Conley’s dieting and fitness empire went into administration in February alongside sister company Rosemary Conley Food & Fitness.
Artisan, which printed the monthly Rosemary Conley Food & Fitness magazine, was the largest of a number of local printing companies to be left out of pocket. It was owed £161,843 and was Quorn House Publishing’s largest creditor.
The Rosemary Conley Food & Fitness business also owed money to other printers, with Leicester-based Alpha Print & Design owed £35,594 and Greenshires Group owed £20,860 according to its statement of affairs.
Initial hopes that an investor would buy the businesses as a going concern with all creditors to be paid in full have been dashed.
Mark Hopkins, joint administrator at Elwell Watchorn & Saxton told PrintWeek that issues over intellectual property stymied the deal: “Sadly we were not able to carry that through to completion, so we are now working on a sale out of administration rather than a rescue.
“We are in discussions now about the various component parts of the Rosemary Conley business and that includes the magazine,” he added. “The magazine is technically capable of being operated on a standalone basis.”
The title had a circulation of almost 61,000 copies. If a publishing partner is found it appears likely that the frequency will be reduced.
Although the Quorn House Publishing report show a deficiency of £345,697 Hopkins said there was still a possibility that creditors could receive a payout as various assets are realised.
He said debtor Market Force was in the process of renegotiating an amount of £112,862 for distribution and promotion of the magazine with retailers.
“Some of those forward commitments have fallen away, so there could be a substantial amount coming in from that debtor,” Hopkins explained. “The position may change quite significantly in the next few weeks.”
The Rosemary Conley Food & Fitness business has a deficiency of £644,690.
Separately, Artisan is approaching the end of a 30-day consultation over 75 proposed redundancies at its site in Beaumont Leys. The £32m turnover company employs around 250 staff.
