Five UK businesses have entered administration this week, including a beauty supplier, a trainer resale platform, a video game developer, a potato provider and a flooring firm. The moves follow declining revenues and rising costs affecting companies across sectors.
Beauty company Aromantic ceases trading
Aromantic, a family-owned supplier of natural and organic beauty products, has ceased trading, with all 11 employees made redundant immediately before the administration. The company, founded in 1997 by Kolbjorn Borseth and later run by his son Benjamin, had a £1.1 million turnover and traded through its own website, Amazon and Shopify, selling oils, fragrances and ingredients for customers to create creams, lotions, balms, toiletries and spa products.
Christopher Horner and Kevin Pinkerton, of restructuring and insolvency practice Business Rescue Expert, have been appointed joint administrators of the Forres-based firm. They have secured the sale of the company's assets, including stock, websites and online platforms, to an unrelated party.
Kevin Pinkerton said: "The fall in revenue, combined with increasing raw material, shipping and employment costs, contributed to the business becoming insolvent. Aromantic took out short-term loans to keep afloat, but the repayment requirements had a material effect on its cashflow. Over the summer, the company sought our assistance to explore ways to keep the business going. Working with the director, we tried every avenue to enable Aromantic to continue trading or sell it as a going concern, but regrettably, a formal insolvency process was the only option."
Footwear platform Laced saved in pre-pack sale
Laced Europe Ltd, a website for buying and selling rare trainers and luxury goods from brands including Nike, Adidas, New Balance and Supreme, was put into administration last month but has now been saved. Established in 2015, the company reported a turnover of £9 million this year.
Quantuma's Terri Mulgrew and Michael Kiely were appointed joint administrators on September 22. A pre-pack sale has protected all jobs, with all seven staff transferred to the purchaser, A Beauty Inc Ltd, part of the AA Investments group, under TUPE regulations.
A spokesperson for the AA Investment Group said: "Laced is a strong brand with a real community behind it. We are proud to continue this journey and to welcome the team into the AA Investments family. Customers and sellers can continue to use the platform as service is coming back step by step while we work on its next chapter."
Video game developer Build A Rocket Boy enters administration
Build A Rocket Boy (BARB), an Edinburgh-based video game company founded by former Grand Theft Auto developer Leslie Benzies, has appointed administrators Opus Restructuring, just a year after launching its debut game MindsEye in June 2025. The company, set up in 2016, initially worked on a multiplayer role-playing game, Everywhere, before pivoting to the action-adventure game MindsEye, which suffered a tough launch with some players branding it "the worst game" of the year and "relentlessly dull".
Opus Restructuring said: "The Joint Administrators are undertaking an immediate review and intend to continue trading the business while exploring all available options with a view to maximising value for creditors and other stakeholders. 49 of the Company's 85 employees were retained upon appointment. Those employees who were made redundant will be supported by the Joint Administrators in claiming their statutory entitlements." It added: "Interested parties should contact Opus Restructuring LLP for further information at buildarocketboy@opusllp.com." It has been reported that between 250 and 300 staff were made redundant after the launch.
Potato provider Glens of Antrim and flooring firm Ceco close
Glens of Antrim potatoes has stopped trading after going into administration. The potato provider, established in 1972, has gone out of business as a result of pressures that have had a "significant and detrimental impact on cashflow." All employees have been made redundant except for a small skeleton staff. Stuart Irwin, managing director at Interpath and joint administrator, said: "Glens of Antrim has been growing and supplying potatoes across Ireland for over 50 years, so this is a tremendously sad outcome for the business, its dedicated team, the agri-food sector in Northern Ireland, and the wider community in Ballymena and Cushendall."
Ceco, a Northern Ireland-based subsidiary of floor coverings distributor Headlam Group, has also entered administration. Established in 1978, Ceco is a prominent provider of flooring products in Ireland. Ian Leonard, director at Interpath and joint administrator, said: "Ceco built a strong reputation across Northern Ireland over many years, working with architects, interior designers, universities and education bodies on a range of prestigious commercial projects. It is particularly sad to see a business of this quality reach this point as a consequence of the challenges experienced by the wider Headlam group. Our immediate priority is to support the employees affected by this news. We will also be engaging with customers and suppliers to fulfil outstanding orders where possible, and will be exploring options for the brand and assets of the business in due course."
