News

Boys Toys Go Under The Hammer!

Thousands of pounds worth of remote control models . . . some of which had price tags up into the hundreds of pounds . . . are to go under the auctioneer’s hammer next week following the closure of a well-known specialist North Lincolnshire retailer.

Model T of Ashby closed its doors and went into liquidation last month. Pending the appointment of a liquidator, the entire stock of the shop has been consigned to industrial auctioneers CJM Asset Management for disposal.

CJM’s Paul Cooper said: “A few weeks before Christmas might seem an odd time for a business like this to give up the ghost but despite all the talk about green shoots the indications that we’re getting on the ground are that the country is heading for an austerity Christmas and that the tough times many retailers are experiencing are far from over.”

"This area of big boys toys is discretionary spending and businesses like Model T have been badly hit by a difficult market and fierce competition from online retailing operations.”

“Some of the kit that we’ve been sent is pretty spectacular including remote controlled aeroplanes, helicopters and vehicles that retailed for up to £300 apiece. There are also remote controlled petrol-engined all terrain buggies that are apparently capable of speeds of 40 miles an hour.”

“We’ve got the entire stock of the shop and that also includes considerable quantities of other modelling kits and supplies plus a few railway items but these do include a wonderful n-gauge railway layout.”

Paul added: “Co-incidentally we’ve been sent the grown-up version of some of these models . . . a wire-controlled pipeline inspection machine. It is a four-wheel drive buggy that carries lights and a television camera, feeding back live images to a portable monitor. It has been sent to us by a finance company after being repossessed.”

The auction on Tuesday (20th October) also includes the remaining stock of an upmarket Louth childrenswear shop that closed down some months ago. The business stocked designer childrens clothing by top names such as Sarah Louise and Emile et Rose.

The 70 lots include clothing, soft toys and gifts for children, ranging from babies through to five and six year olds.

Meanwhile the office furniture and IT section of the sale includes high quality equipment which has been sent for disposal following the failure of a Shropshire company called Salop Management, a firm that specialised in handling claims for consumers who were mis-sold financial products. The business is now in administration.

Paul Cooper said: “Perhaps the most unusual instruction we have in the auction . . . that indicates just how difficult a time some firms are having . . . is in the engineering machinery and tools section where we have the entire kit and stock of an engineering company in West Sussex, where the owners just locked the doors and walked away.”

“When the landlord of the firm’s premises went round to chase up overdue rent, he found the place deserted and no-one has heard from the owners since. The value of the machinery that was abandoned runs into multiple- thousands of pounds. We rate just one machine, a computer-controlled Colchester lathe at £10,000.”

In total the sale extends to over 1000 lots. The viewing sessions are on Friday (16th October) 11am-4pm, Monday (September 19th October) 1pm-7pm and on Tuesday morning from 8.30am until the start of the sale at 10 am. Catalogues are available from CJM or can be downloaded from the firm’s website: www.cjmasset.com free of charge.

For further information or comment please contact Paul Cooper

at CJM Asset Management on 01724-334411.