Generational Dudley business goes under
50 staff made redundant as administrators fail to find a buyer for R Bennett & Co
A 70-YEAR-OLD FAMILY BUSINESS based in Dudley has been forced to close its doors, after its administrators were unable to find a buyer.
Paul Boyle, head of national practice, and Tony Murphy, director, of Harrisons Business Recovery & Insolvency (London) Limited, were appointed joint administrators of R Bennett & Co, a Dudley-based building contractor and joinery manufacturer, on 16 May 2014.
The business was formed in 1945 and has been in the same family for four generations. It had employed 50 members of staff posting £7m turnover in 2013.
Despite adding clients to its roster, alongside its longstanding relationship with Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries Plc, which remained one of its longstanding clients, it was unable to deliver the margins needed to keep the business afloat.
Murphy said: “We have tried every available option to sell this quality, long-established business; however, this has not been possible.”