Creditors owed $5m after collapse

An angry creditor of collapsed building business Stanley/Tallwood has vowed to fight for what his company is owed and plans to challenge its liquidator.

Ten companies associated with Waikato-based Stanley Group and Auckland’s Tallwood were liquidated on Thursday after a shareholder vote.

The companies had about 100 staff. It is understood the collapsed companies owe about $5 million, with most of that owed to subcontractors who were not paid in August with trade debts stretching back many months. Stuff understands some, but not all, subbies were paid in July.

Yesterday, contractors who turned up to Stanley sites were not allowed on.

Extrastaff Recruitment managing director Tom Tschudin said he would try to get creditors together to force a new, ‘‘independent’’ liquidator to handle the company collapses.

He said any time he spent on fighting the liquidation would be more money wasted but it was time to stand up for sub-contractors, who were bearing the brunt of construction company collapses.

Tschudin’s business was also left ‘‘substantially’’ out of pocket after Ebert went bust in 2018. ‘‘These are people’s livelihoods . . . these are real people that are affected.’’

The Stanley Group has had a presence in the New Zealand building industry since the 1920s, and the Stanley family are well known in Matamata where Stanley has its base. Its current managing director is Kevin Stanley.

The annual staff Christmas party, with workers from around the North Island, was meant to be held on Friday night in Matamata.

Waterstone Insolvency was appointed as liquidator.

Liquidator Damien Grant said he would hold a creditors’ meeting and creditors were within their right to remove the liquidator.

Kevin Stanley did not answer his phone or reply to messages when contacted.

Tschudin’s company is one of an unknown number of creditors of the group, which had projects under way for Housing New Zealand, including 66 units in Mangere, and others in Hamilton and Whaka¯ tane.

It had a KiwiBuild project in Auckland and was also behind The Grounds apartment development in Hobsonville Auckland, and Richmond Villas in Thames.

It is understood the company started to have serious financial difficulties a few months ago.

It got ‘‘really bad’’ in August, a source told Stuff.

Stuff has spoken to numerous creditors, who say they are individually owed hundreds of thousands of dollars. Sub-contractors have also accused Stanley of using ‘‘bully boy’’ tactics to get out of paying.

‘‘I say good riddance to them from the industry, hopefully for good,’’ one said.

Wall 2 Wall director Karl McGhie said his firm was owed $250,000.

He said the company was one of many ‘‘angry and p ..... off’’ subcontractors.

Matamata-Piako mayor Jan Barnes said Stanley had a longstanding association with Matamata. ‘‘I feel for the directors, I also feel very much for the families, I believe there might be 30 or 40-odd families and I feel for the subcontractors as well.

‘‘It won’t be just one business in Matamata affected, it is going to ripple right across our district.’’

The business was formed after Stanley merged with Tallwood Ltd, a design and technology-led start-up, in 2018.

Kevin Stanley is currently on the board of Branz (Building Research Association of NZ), while Tallwood chairman Martin Udale is on the board of the Ta¯ maki Regeneration Company, owned jointly by the Government and Auckland Council and council-controlled organisation Panuku.

‘‘I say good riddance to them.’’