News: Six bidders for CF Booth
A potential sale of historic Rotherham firm, CF Booth is still on the cards with six bidders lined up, but further connected companies have gone into administration.
Headquartered and founded in Rotherham in the 1920s, CF Booth has grown from a local metal trader into one of the largest independently run metal recycling companies in Europe. With its 35-acre site at Armer Street, Masbrough, the business has been family owned and operated and once employed over 200 staff, trading both ferrous and non-ferrous metals and processes recycled materials for a wide range of customers across the UK and beyond.
Rothbiz reported first that James Lumb and Howard Smith from Interpath had been appointed after CF Booth Limited posted significant losses and the sad death of a director.
In January 54 members of staff were retained to assist the administrators with 114 members of staff made redundant.
An update from Interpath explains that since then, the company has carried out limited stock processing, finalising work in progress, whilst exploring opportunities to achieve a sale of the business and assets.
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The update states: "Following the Company's entry into administration, we commenced an accelerated marketing and sale process to maximise realisations and reduce holding costs for the benefit of creditors. The appointment generated immediate interest, and we undertook a broader outreach exercise to engage potential acquirers.
"Interest was sourced from parties known to be interested by the Company, direct approaches received by the Administrators, and Interpath's sector networks. In total, 66 parties were contacted as part of the marketing exercise.
"All parties expressing interest in acquiring the full business and asset base were encouraged to visit the site. Thes visits were coordinated to ensure safe access and to allow bidders to assess operations and fixed assets.
"We operated a streamlined timeline during which marketing materials were shared, site visits completed and offers invited. A range of bids were received with differing scopes and conditions. Following assessment, six bidders were shortlisted based on value, deliverability, and alignment with creditor outcomes. They were granted access to additional information and invited into detailed negotiations, supported by external legal advisers who have issued sale and purchase agreements.
"At the date of this report [February 26], a sale of the business and assets has not yet been concluded. We are progressing potential sale and purchase agreements with several parties and expect to provide a further update in our next report."
The administrators report discloses that in the unaudited management accounts for the year ended 31 March 2025, CF Booth Ltd recorded turnover of £107.3m and a loss of £5.3m. The company had recorded losses in each of the previous three years.
The report adds that staff members are preferential creditors and should share £144,022. Realisations from the sale of stock and work in progress to date have enabled the costs of the administration, including the costs of the retained staff.
One of the group's largest debt is with IGF, which only provided a £20m asset-based lending facility in 2025. The debt totalled £14.2m and administrators expect IGF will be repaid in full.
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is listed as a secondary preferential creditor in respect of £1.2m in outstanding VAT, PAYE and National Insurance Contributions with Interpath expecting that they should receive a dividend.
£30.6m is owed to unsecured creditors. Administrators say: "Based on present estimates, there may be a return to unsecured creditors. However, this is dependent on the value achieved from the sale of business and assets (which is not yet known), and the final costs of the administration which are also presently uncertain."
The unsecured creditors list include £3.5m - Employees, £14.3m - Intercompany creditors and another £2.2m - HMRC.
Rothbiz reported last month that a number of connected Booth companies had also gone into administration. Now Demex, the group's demolition business, and Albion Jones Ltd, join Northfield Aluminium Limited, Booth Transport Limited, C.F. Booth (Engineering) Limited, C.F. Booth (Doncaster) Limited and Booth Steel Stockholders Limited.
The report explains: "Over recent months, the business experienced substantial operational and financial headwinds, including sharp rises in energy costs and pronounced volatility in copper prices. These market pressures materially undermined margins and generated a level of cost volatility that the business was unable to absorb.
"In addition, the Company faced escalating cost burdens arising from increases to the National Living Wage and growing environmental compliance obligations. Additional strain was caused by VAT liabilities and penalties imposed by the Health and Safety Executive, all of which compounded the deterioration in cashflow and further weakened the Company's financial resilience."
CF Booth received notice that its appeal against an historical VAT Penalty assessment dating back a decade was unsuccessful resulting in a penalty of £1.4m becoming payable to HMRC. C F Booth Ltd was then fined £1.2m by the HSE after an investigation following the death of an employee on site.
Interpath website
Images: Google Maps
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Headquartered and founded in Rotherham in the 1920s, CF Booth has grown from a local metal trader into one of the largest independently run metal recycling companies in Europe. With its 35-acre site at Armer Street, Masbrough, the business has been family owned and operated and once employed over 200 staff, trading both ferrous and non-ferrous metals and processes recycled materials for a wide range of customers across the UK and beyond.
Rothbiz reported first that James Lumb and Howard Smith from Interpath had been appointed after CF Booth Limited posted significant losses and the sad death of a director.
In January 54 members of staff were retained to assist the administrators with 114 members of staff made redundant.
An update from Interpath explains that since then, the company has carried out limited stock processing, finalising work in progress, whilst exploring opportunities to achieve a sale of the business and assets.
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The update states: "Following the Company's entry into administration, we commenced an accelerated marketing and sale process to maximise realisations and reduce holding costs for the benefit of creditors. The appointment generated immediate interest, and we undertook a broader outreach exercise to engage potential acquirers.
"Interest was sourced from parties known to be interested by the Company, direct approaches received by the Administrators, and Interpath's sector networks. In total, 66 parties were contacted as part of the marketing exercise.
"All parties expressing interest in acquiring the full business and asset base were encouraged to visit the site. Thes visits were coordinated to ensure safe access and to allow bidders to assess operations and fixed assets.
"We operated a streamlined timeline during which marketing materials were shared, site visits completed and offers invited. A range of bids were received with differing scopes and conditions. Following assessment, six bidders were shortlisted based on value, deliverability, and alignment with creditor outcomes. They were granted access to additional information and invited into detailed negotiations, supported by external legal advisers who have issued sale and purchase agreements.
"At the date of this report [February 26], a sale of the business and assets has not yet been concluded. We are progressing potential sale and purchase agreements with several parties and expect to provide a further update in our next report."
The report adds that staff members are preferential creditors and should share £144,022. Realisations from the sale of stock and work in progress to date have enabled the costs of the administration, including the costs of the retained staff.
One of the group's largest debt is with IGF, which only provided a £20m asset-based lending facility in 2025. The debt totalled £14.2m and administrators expect IGF will be repaid in full.
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is listed as a secondary preferential creditor in respect of £1.2m in outstanding VAT, PAYE and National Insurance Contributions with Interpath expecting that they should receive a dividend.
£30.6m is owed to unsecured creditors. Administrators say: "Based on present estimates, there may be a return to unsecured creditors. However, this is dependent on the value achieved from the sale of business and assets (which is not yet known), and the final costs of the administration which are also presently uncertain."
The unsecured creditors list include £3.5m - Employees, £14.3m - Intercompany creditors and another £2.2m - HMRC.
The report explains: "Over recent months, the business experienced substantial operational and financial headwinds, including sharp rises in energy costs and pronounced volatility in copper prices. These market pressures materially undermined margins and generated a level of cost volatility that the business was unable to absorb.
"In addition, the Company faced escalating cost burdens arising from increases to the National Living Wage and growing environmental compliance obligations. Additional strain was caused by VAT liabilities and penalties imposed by the Health and Safety Executive, all of which compounded the deterioration in cashflow and further weakened the Company's financial resilience."
CF Booth received notice that its appeal against an historical VAT Penalty assessment dating back a decade was unsuccessful resulting in a penalty of £1.4m becoming payable to HMRC. C F Booth Ltd was then fined £1.2m by the HSE after an investigation following the death of an employee on site.
Interpath website
Images: Google Maps
