Customers of well-known North East business Pennine Home Improvements have been left in the dark after the sudden closure of the firm’s Tyneside base.
The business has been manufacturing and selling windows, doors and conservatories in the North East for more than 40 years, but for the last week the firm’s North Tyneside outlet has remained shut. A notice on the showroom door claims it has been closed for refurbishment works, but it was still closed four days after its planned reopening.
The company – which specialises in the design and installation of conservatories, orangeries, replacement conservatory roofs, windows and doors – was sold by its original owner to Yorkshire business The Conservatory Outlet Group in an undisclosed deal back in April 2017, leading to a number of new senior hires as well as job creation. At the time, the firm said it was looking forward to taking advantage of growth opportunities, with house prices increasing within the North East and homeowners looking to invest and expand their existing space.
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Documents show, however, that as of last April, Conservatory Outlet Group no longer owns the business, and it is now owned by director Jonathan Young.
Pennine Home Improvements’ showroom in Benton, North Tyneside, has remained closed for the last week on Chollerton Drive on the North Tyne Industrial Estate, where its seven branded vans are also now sat outside taking up most of the space in the customer car park.
The showroom was empty when The Journal called on Thursday, June 22, although a note on the door read: “Please be aware our showroom is currently closed for rennovation (sic) and will reopen on Monday 19th June. Apologies for any inconvenience, should you need to contact us please visit our website.”
However, the company’s website is no longer available, with all links to the site resulting in blank pages.
Most recent accounts for the company listed at the address, Crownfold Limited, only go up to the year ended August 31, 2021 but show it had 46 employees during that financial year, and the amount it owed creditors within a year had widened, from £1.57m to £1.85m. Its operating loss also widened from £900,000 in 2020 to £1.78m, accounts for its previous owners show.
Accounts for its former owners tell how, five years after snapping up the business, it was sold off, with the firm citing in its accounts how “the directors believe that the group will be more profitable and is more resilient without this business”.
The Journal has made attempts to contact the firm through its website and Benton offices. Its telephone number is also no longer in use.
