No longer able to get much Bang for your buck

Clothing company Bontron Pty Limited has been placed into voluntary administration.

Creditors have appointed chartered account, Hall Chadwick, as administrator. Blair Pleash and Geroffrey McDonald have has been named as Hall Chadwick's representatives and will prepare reports for the creditors.

Bontron is owned and operated by Dennis Messina. It markets two womenswear labels: Messina and Bang.

Early indications based on the company's records are that preferred creditors are owed $57,290 while the unsecured creditors total $1,019,699. Creditors are yet to decide whether they will press for liquidation or enter into a deed of arrangement to allow the company to trade on and, if so, for how long. In the meantime trading has been halted and all assets frozen.

Preferred creditors are all employees, several of whom have since left the company to seek work elsewhere. Of those, Carley Ann Binks is owed the most at $16,166 with the next two Annette Gillette $8,379 and Maxwell Madonna $6,726.
Of the unsecured creditors, it appears that Ironrule Pty Limited is the greatest at $75,570, followed by Ray White Commerce with $70,334, New River Australia $64,122, Charles Parsons NZ $58,247, Fabrics One $56,958, Token Imports $$38,681.

Because these amounts were derived from Bonton's accounts records they may be subject to dispute. The least moneys owed are to Vidal Aymerich of Barcelona whose is in for one cent, fabric supplier Wenzel with 50 cents and the NSW Office of State Revenue at one dollar. Probably the most relaxed creditor would be Potter Textiles Pty Limited which appears on the list of unsecured creditors as not being owed anything at all.

One point of interest is the amount owing to fashion agents. This could be close to $100,000 when the final figures are in. Agents have maintained for some time that they should rank as preferred creditors because wages are dependent upon commissions being received.

By Fraser McEwing