Very sad news is that Starleaton. industry supplier across Australia and New Zealand, is now in administration. Establishd by Peter and Lea Eaton in 1978, the present holding company is directed by siblings Ben, Josh and Melissa, with Peter and Lea retiring in 2017.
Happier times - the Starleaton Team celebrating 40 years in business in 2018
With Ben Eaton also being acting President and a board member of industry association Visual Connections, Past President Mitch Mulligan of Boettcher Rollers Australia has resumed the role of acting President, since Eaton resigned his board position last week.
Starleaton has a fine reputation of supporting industry initiatives and training. The company has branches in all states of Australia and also a New Zealand operation. Starleaton is a leading distributor of Epson, Roland DG and Canon wide format printers but its reputation was built of an excellent range of consumables, some converted locally and sold under its own HeliXx and ChromaJet brands and others from 3M, Coldenhove, ContraVision, Brett Martin, Xanita, Hahnemuhle and Neschen. Other major product lines are Zund and Graphtec cutters, Neschen laminators and Klieverik heat calenders.
All hardware products were backed by a well staffed and trained service department. All staff have been stood down by he appointed administrators.
In 2016, Starleaton bought industry supplier DES, who had already merged with another supplier CyraChrome, meaning that Starleaton was effectively 3 leading suppliers in one. Annual Sales Revenues were reported to have peaked in the region of AUD$25 million.
The receivers appointed are Simon Cathro and Andrew Blundell of Cathro & Partners Pty Ltd, George Street Sydney. A brief look at their past administrations show a high level of saving companies and avoiding liquidations, usually with a DOCA ( deed of company arrangement) or sale to a third party. A recent success was the administration and DOCA for cosmetic empire Napoleon Perdis.
Let's hope for a positive outcome for Starleaton, who have been an important part of the Signage and Display landscape in Australia and New Zealand for over four decades. A first meeting of creditors is expected by the end of January.
If you are a creditor of Starleaton you should lodge a proof of claim with Cathro & Partners using THIS PORTAL
Impact on Visual Connections
Acting President Mitch Mulligan Visual Connections' Acting President Mitch Mulligan has issued the following statement with regard to Starleaton's entering administration:
" The Visual Connections Board, like the rest of the industry, was dismayed to hear the announcement on Friday that Starleaton had entered voluntary administration.
Although we had no prior knowledge of the situation, our colleague Ben Eaton, CEO of Starleaton, had resigned from the Board this year to focus on business challenges. The Board will meet in February for a strategic planning session, and will reassign roles at that time.
Starleaton has been a strong and dynamic force in the Australian print and sign supply industry, with a product range and expertise spanning everything from wide-format print and signage, to display and graphics products. They have always been a strong supporter of Visual Connections, and a loyal exhibitor in the PacPrint, PrintEx and Visual Impact exhibitions.
More than that, Ben Eaton has made an enormous and positive contribution to the Visual Connections Board over many years, alongside his involvement with many other industry initiatives. We thank him most sincerely for his ongoing commitment to the industry and his willingness to give back to our sector in such a generous way.
The challenges for businesses over the past few years cannot be overstated, and we are still seeing the flow-on impacts from that today. Visual Connections will always stand with its members and assist in any way possible to ensure that our industry remains strong, vibrant and well-served by innovative and committed suppliers.
We send our best wishes to the Eaton family and to all Starleaton staff, and stand ready to support them in any way possible as they navigate this challenging chapter."
