A rescue plan for the German-owned Wexford fabrics company, Schoepp Velours, which went into examinership two months ago, has been approved by creditors. Most of the 160 jobs at the 18-year-old company will be saved if the management buy-out bid of almost £2 million is accepted in the High Court later this month. The examiner, Mr Pearse Farrell, of Farrell Grant Sparks, said that there were a few "housekeeping issues" remaining and affidavits were being sworn to advise the High Court of the outcome. The company was now in the hands of "an Irish industrial group", he said.
"We have been working on it since early July. It has preoccupied our time since then and it was a difficult situation to bring together existing shareholders, new shareholders and existing creditors, all whom had to accept a certain amount of compromise," he said.
Mr Padraic White, one of the new directors under the plan, said he and the new chief executive, Mr Peter Hower, had "a modest share" in the restructured company. He declined to say who the other investors were before High Court approval of the plan is given.
Mr White added that "close to £2 million" was involved in the buy-out. The sum will form part of the settlement to creditors. Unsecured creditors will be paid 10p in the pound. Payments include tax, rates and employee claims.
But Mr White said the export-oriented company, which trades strongly in the UK and Germany, had a turnover of between £9 million and £10 million per year and a strong order base. A new product range was being introduced. The plant, on the Wexford-Rosslare road, spins threads into design fabrics. It has sophisticated weaving, dying and finishing facilities, Mr White added.
He said the technical problem with the latex furniture covering had cost the company over £1 million in the past 18 months. Reported losses for 1995 were £700,000.
"Despite all the difficulties, we were convinced that examinership was the absolutely logical thing to do in terms of saving the core business," he said. Mr White, a former head of the IDA, is the chairman of Cable Management Ireland, and a director of Novell Software and the Dresdner Bank's IFSC operation.
