Dennise Williams, Staff Reporter
Hayden Singh (right) Courts (Jamaica) Limited managing director, responds to a shareholder's question while Courts executive Richard Luck, looks on, at the company's annual general meeting last year. - WINSTON SILL/FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER
THE SALE of furniture retailer, Courts (Jamaica) Limited, appears to be on track as sources tell Wednesday Business that four international bidders have put strong offers on the table.
The 200-year-old international brokerage house, NM Rothchilds & Sons Limited, is handling the receivership of British based Courts PLC and the sale of Courts (Jamaica).
Anselm Frost of NM Rothchilds confirmed that the sale is progressing but would not give details. "We are half way through the selling process of Courts (Jamaica) but it is going to take awhile to wrap up."
Mr. Frost also would not confirm or deny the rumour that four bidders are seeking to take over the island's largest furniture and electronics retailer.
STILL EVALUATING
Richard Luck, financial director of Courts (Jamaica) told Wednesday Business, "The official position is that the administrator is still evaluating all options. Logically, I would expect a decision shortly."
There is now some uncertainty about the future of the company as Courts PLC had announced previously that it was embarking on a restructuring programme that would see the merger of its 95 branches in 11 Caribbean countries under one regional umbrella.
It had been anticipated that a stock market floatation of this regional entity would have yielded solid returns for the parent company.
Speaking at the Courts (Jamaica) annual general meeting last year, Managing Director Hayden Singh, had said the floatation would have been by June of this year.
This, in turn, had represented a delay from their previous timetable, which was for the listing to take place around January of this year.
Mr. Singh said the company had met with some difficulties in executing its regional strategy. With the complicated tax considerations, he said Courts had to negotiate conditions with the different tax authorities.
"There are 11 (Courts) operations in the Caribbean," Mr. Singh had stated. One of these is already listed in Jamaica and another in Barbados.
Courts Plc, the British parent company, has more than 79 per cent of the shares of the companies in Jamaica and Barbados.
Courts Plc owns all the shares in the other nine companies. The sale of Courts (Jamaica) was necessitated by the collapse of its parent company.
In November 2004, Courts PLC went into receivership with debts of 280 million pounds sterling (J$30.8 billion) and a pensions deficit of 14 million pounds sterling (J$1.5 billion). In the United Kingdom, the repercussions were very serious.
According to reports from British newspaper, The Times, "dozens of stores closed there and angry customers descended on them, smashing windows and looting furniture after they were told they had lost their deposits and goods."
In February, Courts PLC merchandising director of the Caribbean oprerations, James Jacobs was found hanging in his home in England.
The merchandising director for its Caribbean operations, Mr. Jacobs committed suicide after serving 17 years with the company and finding that his pension no longer existed.
NOT DIRECTLY RELATED
Courts PLC has been broken up into its elements with the most appealing elements finding eager buyers.
Courts (Jamaica) executives have declared that the fortunes of Courts (PLC) are not directly related to those of the international operations and that the local company is financially sound.
For their fiscal year ending March 2005, Courts (Jamaica) had a turnover of $6 billion and net profit of $860 million.
The company has approximately 5,000 orders per week and has the competitive advantage of appealing to the mass market through its affordable credit terms.
