Camatic Seating: Decades-old Aussie company collapses putting all staff out of work and owing $29million

An Aussie company that made seats for major sports stadiums around the world has gone bankrupt while still owing tens of millions of dollars.

Camatic Pty Ltd, which operates from Australia with offices in the US and Malaysia, entered voluntary administration in April.

The 60-year-old Australian company owed $29.4 million by the time Jason Stone and Glenn Franklin of insolvency firm PFK were appointed to oversee it.

About 77 employees and “numerous” associates were immediately laid off or laid off and 123 projects were left in limbo.

Camatic, which traded as Camatic Seating, manufactured and installed seats in stadiums, arenas, cinemas, theaters, educational institutions and transit areas worldwide.

Camatic had specialized in chairs for more than 60 years and was active in Australia, Malaysia and the US

Administrators requested unpaid dismissal of employees from April 10 to May 3, according to an internal letter obtained by news.com.au.

‘The reason for the withdrawal is that the majority of the company’s operations have been suspended for the time being, which has led to work stoppages affecting certain employees [including yourself] can no longer be put to good use,” the letter said.

Mr Franklin recommended the company be liquidated and a creditors meeting is scheduled for May 10.

If Camatic goes bankrupt, all employees will permanently lose their jobs.

Unpaid wages accounted for $3.6 million of what is owed to employees, including their wages, pensions, annual leave, long service leave and severance pay.

Outstanding amounts owed to unsecured creditors amounted to $14.9 million, the administrators report said.

Camatic’s largest creditor is HSBC, which owes $11.2 million on loans and credit cards, a mortgage and overdrafts.

The ATO filed a debt notice for $250,000 and Victoria’s State Revenue Office notified the administrators that they owed $331,000.

Claims have also been filed against the company’s factory, ranging from $748 to $114,000, for steel pallets, plastic beads, a printer and fiberboard.

Mr Franklin blamed Covid-19 lockdowns for Camatic’s failure, especially as an international company.

What also didn’t help was the fact that the Camatic opened a new factory in Malaysia during the Covid period.

Due to the lockdowns, management was unable to travel and oversee the setup, which contributed to the decline of the business, Mr Franklin added.

Administrators noted that Camatic’s owners recently attempted to sell the company and had received two offers, but negotiations were ongoing.

Trustees expect the company to go bankrupt and have convened a meeting for creditors on May 10.

Camatic made and installed seats in stadiums, arenas, cinemas, theaters, educational institutions and transit areas around the world

Camatic is run from Melbourne, where it also operates its US branch, Camatic US.

The factory built in Malaysia served regions in the US where the company prided itself on providing service ‘some of the largest stadiums and arenas’, and in Australia, where they provided seating for the Australian Open tennis tournament.

In a recent Instagram post, the company celebrated 20 years of providing Australian Open seating at Rod Laver Arena, Margaret Court Arena and John Cain Arena.

Camatic also supplied more than 5,000 Quantum seats for the Kia Arena, “all of which were manufactured and assembled less than half an hour’s drive from the site at our Melbourne factory,” the company said in a social media post.

It had also supplied more than 42,000 Axiom seats at the Sydney Football Stadium, which opened in mid-2022.

In the US, Camatic collaborated with the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, SoFi Stadium and the Climate Pledge Arena.

Credit reporting agency CreditorWatch reported that the number of external administrators being appointed to Australian companies is reaching a record high.

The rate is 22.1 percent higher than last year at this point.

Last month, national roof manufacturer Lutum collapsed with $20 million in debt and this month Victorian-based Highline Caravans collapsed with more than $1 million in debt.