Quick Colour Print, a WA based print franchise group, has gone into liquidation. Tim Burke director of the company called for a creditors meeting, which is being held this morning in Perth. The 25-year-old franchise went into administration on the March 16, after six of its eight WA stores closed their doors in the last 12 months, according to the neighbouring businesses. Quick Colour Print WA stores were located in Gosnells, Midland, Morley, North Perth, Osborne Park, Perth Esplanade Busport, and the two stores still operating are in East Perth and Geraldton. Australian Printer spoke with the two Quick Colour Print store owners, including Craig Freeman, manager of the Geraldton store, who has expressed his concern for the future of his shop previously, but refused to make further comments until the process of liquidation ‘was complete’. “Right now I can’t say anything, I will be able to give you more details once it’s all sorted, but right now I can’t talk,” he says.
Tim Burke franchise director of Quick Colour Print
Quick Colour Print owner in East Perth, Michael d’Arcy – who has owned his store for eight years – also refused to comment, saying he ‘can’t get involved’. When asked if he would be affected by the liquidation of the franchise, he replied by saying “I am standing alone; I am not part of the franchise group.” He did not want to divulge the ownership arrangement of his shop, which carries the Quick Colour Print logo. Peter Cook, manager at Richard Noble and Company, which leased the Morley shop to Quick Colour Print, says the shop owners moved in less than a year ago to expand their business and ‘we were told about the shop shutting down only a few days ago’. Cook says, “It was very quick, the liquidators told us that they had gone into administration and were repudiating the lease. I am not going to talk about how much money they owe us, but we had to hurry and put the property back on the market to recover some of our costs.” According to the shop owner next door to Quick Colour Print store in Midland, which closed down in December, businesses started to go ‘down after the new franchise owners took over last year’. Sources say that while some shops were being amalgamated to cut costs and increase profits, the Midland store did not receive any ‘support from the new master franchise so Brett and Jaslyn Arnott – the owners of the store – had to walk away’. A neighbouring shop owner says, “Brett came into our shop and told us that it was not worth sticking around accumulating more debt, so he and his wife have decided to move out of the print industry. He now works in a completely different industry.” The franchise headquarters was unattended yesterday, and this morning with the phone ranging out. The material discussed in this morning’s meeting, which is being held at 10:30am at the offices of Pitcher Partners, in Perth, will likely discuss the best way to dissolve assets to recover some of the losses.
Comment below to have your say on this story.
If you have a news story or tip-off, get in touch at editorial@sprinter.com.au.
Sign up to the Sprinter newsletter