With its main print facility based just outside Limavady, just east of Londonderry, as well as a stationery store and a card and gift store in Limavady town centre, the business offered design and printing, sign and display, stationery supplies, and office solutions according to its Facebook page.

It was established in 1974 and founded by Robert Rodgers and Patrick O’Brien, fathers of the directors at the time of closure, Jarleth O’Brien and Stephen Rodgers.

Ronan Anthony Duffy and James Green of McCambridge Duffy were appointed as joint administrators of Limavady Printing Company Ltd on 15 April 2025. The company’s phone number is now cut off while a message on its website confirms the company is closed and directs enquiries to McCambridge Duffy.

“We would like to thank all our customers, suppliers and friends in business – local and beyond – for your custom and support over the years,” the message states.

The statement of administrator’s proposal for the business, filed at Companies House last week, laid out the background to the company’s closure.

It said the business had held contracts in both the public and private sectors and, at its peak prior to the pandemic, had employed more than 65 staff across multiple sites. According to its 2024 accounts it employed 39 staff.

“From 2020 onwards, the company faced several major challenges that had a significantly detrimental impact on its trading performance,” the report stated.

“The Covid-19 pandemic severely impacted trading. The company’s retail outlets were forced to close in line with government mandated lockdowns and social distancing restrictions. In addition, demand in the printing facilities dropped significantly, as many businesses shifted to remote work and adopted paperless systems.

“The post-Brexit trading environment further strained the company’s operations and financial stability, affecting both supply chains and customer demand.”

The report said that, in 2021, HMRC launched a PAYE enquiry and identified a number of issues with a staff savings scheme operated by the company. The scheme was a ‘Christmas Saving Club’ set up at the request of employees.

Following the enquiry, HMRC issued a penalty notice of £107,923, creating additional pressure on cashflow.

Furthermore, the company’s retail premises was significantly damaged during a storm and its claim for repairs was denied by insurers, meaning it had to cover the repair costs from reserves.

It implemented a series of redundancies following these issues but continued to struggle despite securing a Funding Circle loan to assist with the short-term financial pressures, which was personally guaranteed by the directors.

It had attempted to diversify into commercial sectors but administrators said this did not yield sufficient scale to support the existing business model or its associated financial obligations.

In March 2024, meanwhile, a key stationery contract that the company had held since its incorporation and which was valued at around £1.1m per annum, was terminated.

The business attempted to restructure and stabilise through various means, including the sale of some of its assets, but “anticipated transactions and investment opportunities failed to come to fruition”.

By March 2025, “it had become increasingly evident that the company could no longer continue to trade” due to cashflow constraints, financial commitments that were not met, and the lack of a viable revenue model.

The directors first approached McCambridge Duffy in late March to provide restructuring advice, and the company was placed in administration on 15 April, at which point the premises, plant and machinery, motor vehicles and stock were secured, with all employees made redundant.

Mid Ulster Auctions was instructed a week later to manage the valuation and disposal of the company’s stock, plant and machinery – further specifics of which were unknown at the time of writing. The administrators also met with O’Connor Kennedy Turtle, which was engaged to carry out the valuation and marketing of the company’s three owned properties.

Meanwhile, the administrators assessed the possibility of selling the business as a going concern but determined that trading the business was not viable, due to the funding requirements, operating costs, and limited order book and work in progress.

However, the administrators marketed the company and its assets for sale and the business was advertised on IP Bid. Several expressions of interest were received but no formal offers were submitted by the deadline of 23 May.

Therefore, the administrators said their strategy will be to realise the assets. The three commercial properties owned by the business have a total market value of just over £1.2m.

Secured creditor Danske Bank, as well as ordinary preferential creditors and secondary preferential creditors are estimated to receive 100p in the pound, and the administrators said they are confident of “a distribution” being made to unsecured creditors, based on their understanding of anticipated asset realisations and future costs, although they said this may be subject to change.

The company’s unsecured creditors are estimated at £862,469. Trade and expense creditors make up around £500,000 of this with the majority of the remainder made up by employees – although it was unclear at the time of writing how many staff the company employed at the time of closure.