News

Is the day of reckoning almost here for The Walking Dead? As far back as four years ago we highlighted the huge rise in ‘zombie companies’, businesses that had been artificially propped up by Covid loans and low interest rates on core borrowings that predated the...

Despite earning millions during their careers, an alarming number of professional footballers in the UK go bankrupt within a few years of retirement.  It’s the flip side of success in ‘the beautiful game’ that I recognise only too well as both an Insolvency...

Sometimes, giving up and calling it day is simply the right thing to do – and timing is critical. It’s a common misconception is that Insolvency Practitioners (IP) exist only to close businesses that go bust or run out of money. This is by no means always the case,...

The UK Professional Services sector isn’t necessarily enjoying the easy ride that observers in industries more directly hit by economic pressures might think it is. Major companies in some of those industries will have turned to external management consultants,...

The fall into administration this month of health and beauty chain Bodycare is yet further evidence that there is no sign of the post-Covid bloodbath on the High Street ending anytime soon. That’s certainly the view of UK retailers as they scale back investment plans,...

In Aid of Macmillan Cancer Support Last month, in our Tried and Tested recipe series, we delighted in Caroline’s Normandy Apple Cake. This month, our journey takes a wonderfully tangy turn thanks to Bunty, the wife of our George Rishi, consultant at Buchler Phillips....

Forgive me for writing a more whimsical briefing than usual, but it is uncanny how frequently financial crises have been heralded by a general return from the summer vacation. The Great Crash of October 1929; the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 that came to a head...

The story of Challenge Recruitment Group – “Challenged” or “Challenging” might have been more appropriate – belies a marked shift in the UK employment model and a route to giving businesses much needed flexibility in tough times. HMRC is chasing around £90m in unpaid...

Sanctions are among the most powerful tools governments use in these times of international conflict. Yet while designed to target states and political actors, they can also leave unintended casualties in the corporate world. Few cases illustrate this more starkly...

The number of hospitality businesses entering insolvency eased slightly in the first half of 2025, yet remained historically high, reflecting challenging trading conditions for the industry. Some 1,706 accommodation and food service companies, including hotels,...

If you’ve ever travelled through Normandy, you’ll know it’s a region that wears its apple orchards like a crown. Rows of gnarled trees, heavy with fruit in late summer and autumn, are as much a part of the landscape as the half-timbered farmhouses and dairy cows....

Buchler Phillips is delighted to announce the appointment of Toby Horne as an Analyst in the Corporate Recovery, Restructuring and Turnaround Team. Toby began his career as an Insolvency Administrator at London insolvency practice CMB Partners, focusing chiefly on...