Written ByRobert Moore
Marketing Manager
Rob has over a decade of experience in web and general marketing. He has extensive knowledge of the Insolvency sector and has helped many worried directors with their questions.
Rob is now working with the Board at KSA Group Ltd to develop strategic marketing programmes to support the business plan and drive more company rescues.
New documents reveal that Heather Mills, business founder of the collapsed VBites, has bought the assets from administrators in a rescue deal worth £1m.
Only the plant, machinery, stock, IP and social media was included in the deal. The jobs of the 84 staff (64 retained through the administration and 20 let go at the appointing of administrators) was not included.
This being said, Mills is believed to have re-employed about 40 staff which may increase as time goes on. The Peterlee and Corby factories remain operational.
VBites, the vegan food business founded in 1993 by Heather Mills, ex-wife of Sir Paul McCartney, has gone into administration. The company cited higher energy and raw material costs.
As vegan product demand increased, the business acquired Redwood Wholefood in 2009, but growing costs and supply concerns hurt it.
Ms. Mills was upset by the failure and thanked her team for their “blood, sweat and tears” over 30 years in the industry.
“This is extremely distressing for me on a personal level but also for my wonderfully loyal and hard-working staff,” stated.
She said she had poured “tens of millions of pounds into the business” and given “every solution I feasibly could to keep it going, but sadly mine and my staff’s efforts have been thwarted”.
Heather then went on to heavily criticise the meat industry and social media influencers for putting people off vegan food.
Vegan food, which costs more than meat or dairy, has suffered as buyers struggle with rising food prices.
The Vegan Society estimates 700,000 vegans in the UK, and vegetarians like vegan meals.
After VBites finance talks failed, Interpath Advisory appointed administrators on Monday.
The company has factories in Peterlee, County Durham, and Corby, Northamptonshire.
Interpath Advisory said the company will trade from Peterlee while it seeks a buyer for the business and its assets.
It stated that 29 Peterlee staff members were being retained to assist with trading.
Twenty-five Corby employees are also working for the joint administrators to process existing orders.
The company has laid off 24 workers.
James Clark, joint administrator and managing director at Interpath Advisory, said: “VBites is one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of vegan food products but unfortunately, and in common with many other companies across the food manufacturing sector, had seen trading impacted by rising commodity and energy prices.”