£197k owed as book publishers goes under
A DARLINGTON publishing firm has collapsed taking with it thousands of pounds from hopeful authors whose books are likely to sink without trace.
Serendipity, the trading name of Ardrope Ltd, owed £197,000 to more than 150 creditors, the majority of them elderly people who had paid for their books to be published and marketed, liquidators said.
Assets amounted to just £13,000.
RMT Accountants and Business Advisors in Newcastle said it was working to establish the position of the company in relation to its creditors. But added that it was “highly unlikely” that the company, set up in May 2001, would be able to repay its debts.
Simon Stephenson, RMT’s recovery and insolvency manager, said: “The liquidation of Serendipity has created a great deal of interest among its author clients around the country, who hold their books close to their hearts. Many of the authors are aged and their novels recount episodes in their lives.
“Understandably, they are anxious to know what has happened to their books and why the company failed.”
Serendipity ran into difficulty in April 2007 when its computer system was infected by a virus. The problems caused delays in the publication of books.
Serendipity’s plight has highlighted the rise in company liquidations, which business advisory firm BDO Stoy Hayward predicts will increase by nearly 3,000 next year to 19,124.
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