UPDATE: Pedley Furniture Ltd deal falls through

ELATION has turned into despair for workers as the purchase of a Saffron Walden firm fell through at the last minute.

Pedley Furniture International was put into administration in July after years of financial struggles but looked to be on the mend after MJM – a cruise ship refurbishment company – came forward.

However, the deal has fallen through and all 33 members of staff have been made redundant.

Jason Baker, joint administrator to Pedley Furniture International and partner at specialist recovery, restructuring and insolvency firm FRP Advisory LLP, said in a statement: “Since we were appointed as joint administrators to Pedley Furniture International on 22 July our aim has been to sell the business as a going concern.

“To this end we entered into a licence agreement with MJM, an established furniture manufacturer based in Northern Ireland, to continue production through September.

“Despite conducting extensive discussions with MJM regarding a sale, unfortunately MJM has confirmed that it will not be purchasing Pedley Furniture International.

“We have not been able to find any other parties interested in acquiring the business so it is with regret that we have had to make the employees redundant.”

A spokesman for MJM commented: “We have worked closely with the Joint Administrators on a possible deal to acquire Pedleys. However, we have decided to focus on other investment opportunities as part of our growth strategy.”