An award-winning Feilding business now in liquidation has debts of nearly a quarter of a million dollars.

Manawatu Grain Seed and Saddlery was placed into liquidation last week by owners Chris and Sharon Malcolm.

The first liquidation report has since been released, outlining what led the company to fail.

Compiled by Jeff Hart and Andrew Bethell, of BDO, the report said the company was successful since it was founded in 2009. However, things soon changed.

"It appears to have suffered difficult trading conditions in 2012, including significant bad debts," the report said.

"To address the situation . . . the directors explored refinancing and other options for cash injection into the business.

"It was with the failure of these attempts in late January 2013 that the directors concluded . . . the company needed to be placed into liquidation." The report said an audit of accounts was yet to be undertaken, but debts and assets were able to be estimated from the company's accounts. Unsecured creditors were owed $225,000.

Those creditors included Courtesy Ford Palmerston North, Palmerston North City Council, Manawatu Truck Services and Fairfax Media, which publishes the Standard.

The report said the company's $128,062 in fixed assets were mainly in the form of two company vehicles, while there was also some stock left in the building. Liquidators were not banking on those assets to pay all the bills.

The Malcolms did not respond to requests for comment.

The business won the supreme award at the Feilding Excellence in Business Awards in 2011.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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