Folkstone Fixings (FFX) placed into Administration

[Sideways]

HMRC are the prime creditor and always get their money before anyone else ….

Actually no.
It is more nuanced than that, though HMRC are near the top of the pecking order, among the preferential creditors and will be paid before most others.

This is another reference with more detail:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...e to,unpaid employees of insolvent businesses.

 

[Amplidyne]

They closed Basingstoke too.

A lot of these companies don’t realise that you need too buy your own property to avoid ups and downs and to weather storms.
Axminster closed their locations becuase the rent after review went up by 3x.
One of the best thing you can do is own your own premises.
Unfortunately the conservative government and now labour, are throttling industrial and commercial which is putting up rates ridiculously. Another burden on British business.

I was talking to a bloke in a local town with a little record shop. Must have been 15 years back. He was telling me what the costs of running the place were, and it was ridiculous back then. Can't remember now, but it was thousands in rent, more in business rates, and a hefty chunk for electricity. He told me he would stick it out to the end of his lease, and he was going online, he said he was already doing a healthy percentage of his business that way.

Not a town I go to often, but last time I looked he was gone. So as usual the council, motto "We're short of funds" has taxed people out of business basically.

I doubt if anyone in the council knows what a Laffer curve is. Householders may not have a choice but to pay whatever they ask, but businesses do.

 

[niemeyjt]

I was talking to a bloke in a local town with a little record shop. Must have been 15 years back. He was telling me what the costs of running the place were, and it was ridiculous back then. Can't remember now, but it was thousands in rent, more in business rates, and a hefty chunk for electricity. He told me he would stick it out to the end of his lease, and he was going online, he said he was already doing a healthy percentage of his business that way.

Not a town I go to often, but last time I looked he was gone. So as usual the council, motto "We're short of funds" has taxed people out of business basically.

I doubt if anyone in the council knows what a Laffer curve is. Householders may not have a choice but to pay whatever they ask, but businesses do.

So true - there was an silly person in Ipswich who did almost that.

The town centre is dying -> we get less revenue -> we need to increase parking fees to raise money -> rinse and repeat.

I remember a garden shop I used to frequent being one of the first to appreciate this - and move out.