News

Stiller Transport Ltd, the wholly owned subsidary of Stiller Group, will be wound up following a move into voluntary liquidation, resulting in the loss of 24 jobs.

After a creditors' meeting earlier today (Tuesday 26 May), Stockton-on-Tees-based Stiller Group issued a statement saying it could not continue to support Stiller Transport Ltd indefinitely without causing unquantified risks to  the remainder of the group and its 300-plus employees.

Stiller Group also said its turnover had dropped by some £20m by the end of 2008, with the majority of the losses coming from the subsidiary due to the recession hitting customers in the steel and construction sectors.

It added it had supported the "ailing business" to a level in excess of £3m but it was with "great regret" it had reached the "difficult decision" to close the subsidiary.

Stiller Group also stressed that Stiller Tankers Ltd and Stiller Warehousing and Distribution Ltd continued to trade profitably.

In February, Stiller Group said it remained confident about the future despite revealing poor results for the year to 31 December 2007, including an update on its 2008 trading.

At the time, financial director Andrew Winney said: "As the  recession deepened, we shared with the bank [HBOS] our trading position and it was clear that the general haulage side of the business was suffering from a severe slowdown in steel and construction."

In April, Stiller Group sold off its training academy to the management and staff. The MD of the newly coined Evolution Learning, John Craig, said Stiller could no longer justify the extra investment that running the subsidiary required.