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DREAMS shattered ... Paul Bailey and Nicola Thompson have lost £3,000 – and their wedding reception
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Closure shatters wedding plans
Faye Adams29/ 8/2008
FIFTY couples have had their dreams of a perfect wedding ruined by the closure of the Broadfield Hotel.
Administrators were appointed three weeks ago in a bid to save the business, but owner Andrew Kusytsch told them on Tuesday he could no longer continue.
One couple learned this week they had lost £3,000, and another pair £1,100.
It is thought 15 weddings had been booked for before Christmas and 35 in the new year. All had paid at least sizeable deposits.
The owners of the Broadfield blame the credit crunch for the collapse of the business.
One couple, Stephen Ruane and Ashleigh Williams, of George Street, Smallbridge, said they now feel their bubble has been burst.
Due to marry in three weeks, they only found out that the Broadfield had gone out of business when their car hire company contacted Ashleigh with the news.
"At first I thought it was somebody trying to wind me up," said the 36-year old, whose parents are coming over from Jamaica.
The couple had handed over a cheque for £4,000 to the Broadfield a few days earlier for a meal and evening reception.
Luckily, they were able to cancel the cheque, but have lost the deposit of £1,100.
They are now holding their wedding reception at the Town Hall, but the extra expense and lost money means they will have to do without a honeymoon.
"I feel very upset," said Stephen. "How could they just sit there on Saturday and take our money? I find it despicable."
Disappointed bride-to-be Sarah MacKimm of Belfield Mill Lane had booked her wedding to fiance Mark Davies 18 months ago.
She said she had ‘sobbed for about five hours’ after hearing the news.
The 30-year-old nursery nurse had been due to shell out £4,000 yesterday to pay for her wedding, but fortunately had only put down a £900 deposit, part of which they have lost.
She said: "We thought it was a reputable place and had been going for such a long time that we didn’t think there were any problems paying a bit more up front."
Paul Bailey and Nicola Thompson have lost £3,000 after booking a wedding meal and reception for 180 evening guests. Nicola, aged 31, who works for Manchester City Council, said: "I have planned this day in my head since I was eight and we have saved really hard for it. We are both just devastated."
Those who paid by credit card can apply for a refund, but those who paid with cash or debit cards have lost their money.
Thirty-six hotel employees have been made redundant. Some turned up for work unaware anything was wrong.
Insolvency practitioner Colin Burke said: "We were working to try and save the business in the form of a new company.
"For whatever reason, we were advised on Tuesday that he [Mr Kusytsch] wasn’t in a position to proceed with a rescue."
It is thought the business owes around £100,000.
"We have the unfortunate duty of advising these people who have weddings or other functions booked and the staff that they are no longer employed.
"This is not a good story: there are no winners."
The building at the top of Sparrow Hill was originally built in 1905 as a nurses home. It then became a clinic, before being converted into the Broadfield in the 1970s.
The owners of the Broadfield said: "The directors of Ivydale Management Limited deeply regret the closure of the Broadfield Hotel and the distress which this will inevitably cause to employees, patrons and friends alike. The Broadfield has long been one of Rochdale’s favourite hotels and many people have fond memories of it.
"Ivydale took over the running of the Broadfield in May 2003 and since then the directors have invested hundreds of thousands of pounds of their own assets in the business in an attempt to restore the Broadfield to its former glory. Sadly the credit crunch has taken its toll on the business since summer 2007, as a result of which administrators were appointed on 7 August 2008.
"A prospective purchaser has continued to operate the Broadfield under licence from the administrators since 7 August, but following developments late last week it became clear that the proposed take over of the business would not go ahead and the administrators were left with no alternative other than to close the business.
"The directors’ thoughts are particularly with those loyal patrons of the Broadfield who had booked important functions, including weddings, to be held in the coming days and weeks.
"All inquiries should be addressed to the joint administrators of Ivydale Limited Mr Gary Corbett and Mr Colin Burke of Messrs Milner Boardman and Partners, Ashley Road, Hale, Cheshire. Their telephone number is 0161 927 7788."
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2/09/2008 at 21:22
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