Ireland's leading video retail and rental chain Xtra-vision is going into receivership. Luke Charleton and Colin Farquharson, of Ernst & Young, have been appointed Joint Receivers. Headquartered in Tallaght, the company operates 152 stores around Ireland, hosts a database of over 400,000 customers and employs 1023 people. It also has a staff of 242 in 42 stores in Northern Ireland.

Xtra-vision is owned by Birchhall Investments, backed by NCB Ventures and Pageant Holdings Limited. It is understood suppliers to the company were unable to secure credit insurance in the past 10 days. This meant that they were no longer in a position to extend credit to Xtra-vision.

The receivers intend to ensure that the company continues to trade as normal, with a view to selling the business as a going concern. "We are advised that the majority of stores are profitable and collectively will be attractive to potential purchasers. We will work closely with management to assess the viability of each of company's stores," commented Charleton. "We will advertise the business seeking expressions of interest from third parties with a view to securing the early and successful disposal of the Xtra-vision, thereby ensuring the continuation of the business."

During the sales process customers should remain unaffected by the receivership. All gift cards, cash deposits and savings club amounts will be honoured.

Xtra-vision has transitioned itself from primarily a movie rental company to one of a broad-based provider of movies and games for both retail and rental, and the full spectrum of home entertainment products. As an unintended point of irony, Xtra-vision website informs visitors: 'There are exciting developments coming soon in our Digital world, so watch this space.'

Story filed 29.04.13