Kleenmaid
Encyclopedia
Kleenmaid is an Australia
n company
established in 1985 by Andrew Young and Dick England that imported and sold major appliance
s. The company collapsed in April 2009 with debts in excess of A$100 million and is now being liquidated
.
of Queensland
in 1985. Utilising their extensive knowledge and contacts in the appliance repair industry, Kleenmaid started out in Australia by selling a re-branded Speed Queen washer through appliance service agents. These repair agents were offered lucrative monetary incentives by Kleenmaid to recommemnd the Kleenmaid washer whilst attending to service calls on other brands of washing machines in consumers homes - in the early 1990s, appliance servicemen could earn up to a $250 bonus by recommending, selling and installing a Kleenmaid washer! Additional incentives also included overseas trips to Speed Queen factories in the USA & Brandt dishwasher factories in France for service agents that met sales targets. From the re-branded Speed Queen washer, Kleenmaid expanded their range by sourcing cooking appliances, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners etc from a variety of foreign appliance suppliers, plus the Kleenmaid range commenced sales through major retail appliance retailers including Harvey Norman & Clive Peeters. After several years of operation in major retailers, Andrew Young severed all ties with these partners and Kleenmaid became exclusive to Kleenmaid franchised stores. The company employed a franchise
model for distribution of its products.
By 2009 the company had 20 retail outlets operating across five states. Five of these outlets were wholly owned by the company, the remaining 15 were held by franchisees.
In 2008 the company was reported to have over 400 employees, and was listed in Business Review Weekly
's listing of the top 500 Australian companies.
On 9 April 2009 Kleenmaid director Andrew Young announced the company would be going into voluntary administration with debts of a reported $67 million. 150 employees were to lose their jobs immediately as a consequence. Shortly afterwards it was reported that the company had received $27 million in customer deposits for goods that it would not be able to deliver.
On 17 May 2009 the administrators from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
released their report which revised the debt to $82 million and indicated the company may have been trading while insolvent
since June 2007.
On 25 May 2009 creditors voted to liquidate
the Kleenmaid Group and Deloittes was appointed as the liquidator. The debt figure had again been revised to "in excess of $100 million".
On 30 May 2009 it was reported that two weeks prior to announcing the company's financial troubles, Kleenmaid launched a "Customer Loyalty" program where for a fee of $299 participants would earn considerable savings at numerous major retailers, plus a "free luxury holiday valued at $1400" if the customer joined by 20 March. It is not clear how many people joined this program.
The liquidators also announced that they would be investigating possible criminal charges of trading while insolvent against the company and had requested ASIC
assistance to this end.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n company
Company
A company is a form of business organization. It is an association or collection of individual real persons and/or other companies, who each provide some form of capital. This group has a common purpose or focus and an aim of gaining profits. This collection, group or association of persons can be...
established in 1985 by Andrew Young and Dick England that imported and sold major appliance
Major appliance
A major appliance, or domestic appliance, is usually defined as a large machine which accomplishes some routine housekeeping task, which includes purposes such as cooking, or food preservation, whether in a household, institutional, commercial or industrial setting...
s. The company collapsed in April 2009 with debts in excess of A$100 million and is now being liquidated
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
.
Pre-collapse history
According to the company website, Kleenmaid was established by Andrew Young & Dick England, both with backgrounds in the appliance repair/service industry, on the Sunshine CoastSunshine Coast, Queensland
The Sunshine Coast is an urban area in South East Queensland, north of the state capital of Brisbane on the Pacific Ocean coastline. Although it does not have a central business district, by population it ranks as the 10th largest metropolis in Australia and the third largest in...
of Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
in 1985. Utilising their extensive knowledge and contacts in the appliance repair industry, Kleenmaid started out in Australia by selling a re-branded Speed Queen washer through appliance service agents. These repair agents were offered lucrative monetary incentives by Kleenmaid to recommemnd the Kleenmaid washer whilst attending to service calls on other brands of washing machines in consumers homes - in the early 1990s, appliance servicemen could earn up to a $250 bonus by recommending, selling and installing a Kleenmaid washer! Additional incentives also included overseas trips to Speed Queen factories in the USA & Brandt dishwasher factories in France for service agents that met sales targets. From the re-branded Speed Queen washer, Kleenmaid expanded their range by sourcing cooking appliances, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners etc from a variety of foreign appliance suppliers, plus the Kleenmaid range commenced sales through major retail appliance retailers including Harvey Norman & Clive Peeters. After several years of operation in major retailers, Andrew Young severed all ties with these partners and Kleenmaid became exclusive to Kleenmaid franchised stores. The company employed a franchise
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
model for distribution of its products.
By 2009 the company had 20 retail outlets operating across five states. Five of these outlets were wholly owned by the company, the remaining 15 were held by franchisees.
In 2008 the company was reported to have over 400 employees, and was listed in Business Review Weekly
Business Review Weekly
BRW is an Australian weekly business magazine published by the Fairfax Media group. It regularly compiles lists which rank corporations and individuals according to various criteria, similar to Fortune magazine in the United States.BRW provides news and commentary on the economy, business and...
's listing of the top 500 Australian companies.
Company collapse and aftermath
Rumours were circulating about the financial stability of the company for much of 2008, and the company had not fulfilled any orders since November of that year.On 9 April 2009 Kleenmaid director Andrew Young announced the company would be going into voluntary administration with debts of a reported $67 million. 150 employees were to lose their jobs immediately as a consequence. Shortly afterwards it was reported that the company had received $27 million in customer deposits for goods that it would not be able to deliver.
On 17 May 2009 the administrators from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited , commonly referred to as Deloitte, is one of the Big Four accountancy firms along with PricewaterhouseCoopers , Ernst & Young, and KPMG....
released their report which revised the debt to $82 million and indicated the company may have been trading while insolvent
Insolvency
Insolvency means the inability to pay one's debts as they fall due. Usually used to refer to a business, insolvency refers to the inability of a company to pay off its debts.Business insolvency is defined in two different ways:...
since June 2007.
On 25 May 2009 creditors voted to liquidate
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
the Kleenmaid Group and Deloittes was appointed as the liquidator. The debt figure had again been revised to "in excess of $100 million".
On 30 May 2009 it was reported that two weeks prior to announcing the company's financial troubles, Kleenmaid launched a "Customer Loyalty" program where for a fee of $299 participants would earn considerable savings at numerous major retailers, plus a "free luxury holiday valued at $1400" if the customer joined by 20 March. It is not clear how many people joined this program.
The liquidators also announced that they would be investigating possible criminal charges of trading while insolvent against the company and had requested ASIC
Australian Securities and Investments Commission
The Australian Securities & Investments Commission is an independent Australian government body that acts as Australia's corporate regulator...
assistance to this end.