Struggling Peapod in administration

Blames tough market and own over-ambitious expansion plans

Security firm Peapod has gone into administration, blaming the tough market conditions and its own over-ambitious expansion plans.

The Middlesex-based company is made up of two groups: its Peapod UK reseller arm and Peapod Distribution. The holding company for both arms of Peapod is e-initiative.

Ray Glover, managing director of e-initiative, cited the tough economic conditions as the cause of Peapod's troubles. "It has been a very difficult trading year for IT in general, and we have been impacted because of that," he said.

Jonathan Birch, business recovery director at administrator Numerica, confirmed that Peapod went into administration on 16 October, although it continues to trade as normal.

"Peapod, like most businesses in the technology industry, is sound, but the market is very difficult," said Birch. He added that the firm also struggled in the slowdown because it had large overheads, having previously expanded its business into the Netherlands, Sweden and Germany.

The administrator is now in the process of finding a buyer. "We are looking to sell the business as a going concern and the group is currently providing all of its services as normal," Birch said. He added that several parties had expressed an interest.

Glover said he is hoping to find a buyer as quickly as possible, and did not rule out splitting the two arms of Peapod to achieve a quick sale.

Ian Kilpatrick, group managing director at distributor Wick Hill, which has sold equipment to Peapod in the past, said: "Most specialist security distributors are in good shape. I don't think the market conditions are the reason behind Peapod's troubles."

He added that some IT firms are having problems because they stock the wrong products and don't add enough value.