Beleaguered fashion brand Bettina Liano is back in administration, despite being rescued by Apparel Group just last year.
The eponymous women's fashion brand of designer Bettina Liano is now in the hands of administrators Richard Albarran, David Ross and Brent Kijurina of Hall Chadwick, Sydney after they were appointed officially on September 24.
According to administrators, the first creditors meeting will be held in Hall Chadwick’s Melbourne offices on Friday, October 4 at 11am.
This is the second fall into administration for the brand, after it collapsed initially in July 2011, following a series of financial mishaps and business structuring issues.
At the time, a register obtained by Ragtrader from a creditor's meeting on March 8, 2012 revealed unsecured claims of over $3.3 million as well as $2.3 million to secured creditor ANZ.
As previously reported on ragtrader.com.au, the Bettina Liano brand has since been salvaged by a supply deal with Sydney-based clothing manufacturing business Apparel Group to design, manufacture and wholesale the label.
When contacted by ragtrader.com.au, Apparel Group was unavailable for comment.
The second collapse of the Bettina Liano empire will also put a halt on the brand's plans to increase its international presence – which Liano had expressed to Ragtrader [June 2012] as a priority for the evolution of the label.
“A [real] comeback for me would be to just suddenly become huge internationally, to go to the next level. It's business as usual so far, but I do plan to extend far and wide overseas and I've teamed up with some people to help me achieve this,” she said.
Liano said at the time that the US, Europe, and Asia were her initial target markets to increase her wholesaling business overseas, with plans to also expand into other product categories.
The designer teamed with LA-based celebrity photographer, Robert Erdmann in February 2013 to launch her first US store in the Soho district.
Liano launched her first store in Australia in 1990, but closed all but one of her Australian stores following the first administration.
Speaking exclusively to Ragtrader [March 2013] earlier this year, Liano said her business and its US expansion strategy was “completely under control” cost-wise.
“I'm not doing this on my own, I have a private investor on board who is an American. Cost-wise it's completely under control, it's low-risk,” she said.