MEETING OF CREDITORS

Southland Times, Issue 18971, 19 June 1923, Page 2

MEETING OF CREDITORS

LOCAL TAILOR FAILS. POSITION DUE TO SLUMP. A meeting of creditors in the estate of James Hunter, who has carried on business as a tailor in Dee street since 1919, was held in the Official Assignee’s office yesterday afternoon. The amount owing to unsecured creditors totalled £572 5/5 aud his assets were estimated at £932 6/3, leaving an apparent surplus of £360 0/10. The principal unsecured creditors were:— James Hodgson, Auckland, £129 Cramp Nicolls Ltd, Auckland, £B5 17/2; Miller and Ahearn, Wellington, £99 5/5; Butterworth Ltd, Dunedin, £57 4/1; F. H. King and Co., Ltd., Dunedin, £47 1/10; Ackroyd Bros, Christchurch, £4l; Southland Times £3l. The bankrupt stated that in December 1919 he took over the tailoring business in Dee street previously occupied by R. Prentice, now deceased. He had been working for him for 14 years previous to that. After Mr Prentice’s death in 1918, bankrupt carried bn the business for the trustees for twelve months and then bought the business. He put close on £2OO into the business with which he bought stock and fittings; He did well at first, employing about eight hands, but when the slump came on in 1920 his business fell away to about half and he had to get rid of some of the hands. Up till then he had been turning over about £4OO per month and the money came in well. After he had been in business about nine months the prices fell. He was carrying heavy stocks of expensive tweed at the time and he was of the opinion that he lost about £5OO by the fall in prices. He considered this had been one of the chief causes of his bankruptcy. He reduced his stocks as much as possible and had only been carrying small stocks lately. After the slump he not only did a much smaller business, but his customers took much longer to pay and he gradually began to get more on the books compared with the turnover. Having to be out of so much money had kept him very short of cash and lately he had had very great difficulty in financing his business. Two of his creditors got judgment against, him and threatened to take out a distress warrant. In order to protect the whole of his creditors he was advised to file. He had a private meeting of his creditors about three weeks ago and a second meeting was to have been held a fortnight later when the position had been ascertained, but the attitude of the two creditors mentioned, necessitated his filing. If given time he was sure he could pay everybody 20/- in the £l. He was satisfied that he could make the business pay, but the slump, the falling prices and the long credit had been too much for him. Since filing he had been carrying on under the supervision of the Assignee. He had considerably nfore work in hand than would pay the expenses—all for cash customers. When he filed he had about £lOO worth of work in hand which he was completing and he had taken a few orders since with the Assignee's consent. It will take about a fortnight to wash up everything in hand. He had collected and paid over to the Assignee about £6B and his solicitors (through him) had collected about the same amount. He had a number of premises of payment within lhe next fortnight and if the creditors would agree to carry on as at present for a further two weeks he would try to get a guarantee and make an offer then. A creditor stated that Mr Hunter’s position appeared to be due to bad luck more than to anything else. It was decided that the action of the Assignee in keeping the business open be confirmed and that the business be carried on, as at present, for another fortnight to enable bqfckrupt to make an offer.