Chairman of Peters Opal, Brian Peters, is in Palma, Majorca wrestling with business problems after 130 of his employees were served with redundancy notices. ‘The company has gone into administration and I have been told to say nothing,’ he told YM.

Surely he had some message for the thousands of customers who have bought or are buying his wares? , we asked.’Now is not the right time. There may be something to say in the future,’ he said.

What about the 130 employees losing their jobs and the fact that he is President of the British Marine Federation?, we asked. ‘Quite frankly I have been told to make no comment.’

He referred us to administrators KPMG. Jane Moriarty and Myles Halley of KPMG LLP have been appointed joint administrators of B.A. Peters.

The company is one of the UK’s largest yacht dealerships operating six marinas in the UK and four marinas in Spain. The company is also one of the
UK’s largest approved service agents for the key suppliers of Volvo Marine
and Raymarine.

The business currently has licence agreements with Azimut, Bavaria, Legend,
Rodman and Island Packet for the sale of luxury yachts. Other operations
include a Shipyard at Chichester which undertakes warranty work for the
company’s key boat manufacturers.

Jane Moriarty, partner KPMG Restructuring and joint administrator said:
“Due to difficult trading conditions the company has experienced extreme
cash flow problems. Although the business continues to trade, we have
unfortunately had to make 130 members of staff redundant.”

The administrators are currently reviewing the financial position of the
company and are actively seeking a buyer for the business.

B A Peters Plc employed 180 people based mainly at Chichester and had an annual
turnover of around £82 million. UK leasehold sales sites are at Chichester, Ipswich, Eastbourne, Gosport, Swanwick, Brixham, and Inverkip; Spanish sales sites are in Mallorca (Cala d’Or), Sotogrande, and Denia.