About us: Barkingside Premier Storage 

Last week I was contacted by a former client investor of now bust European Fine Wines who had been contacted and told that miraculously they had some additional wines that had been bought by EFW (European Fine Wines):

'EFW bought wines with my money, they may have not been totally transparent with the use of my funds and may have bought additional wines and stored them in my name. These wines appear to have been kept in store at Barkingside - which I have never heard of - and for data protection reasons, Barkingside has sent me a list of wines that appear to be in their store under my name.'

The investor then received an email from a Mr Daniel Wickman, 'storage manager' at Barkingside Premier Storage:

'As requested, we are writing to you in regard to your request for a stock report, we have therefore documented below your stock rotation report (*******) inclusive of the wines that we are currently storing under our administrator account on your behalf:

Chateau Haut Brion 2009 (12x75cl)
Chateau Haut Brion 2010 (12x75cl)
Chateau Montrose 2011 (12x75cl)
Chateau Lafite Rothschild 2009 (12x75cl)'

The investor doubtless had mixed emotions when they received Wickham's message. Delight that unknown to them they had four cases of wine that EFW had kindly bought for them. Suspicion that that this unexpected windfall was part of a scam, so they contacted investdrinks to ask what I knew of Barkingside Premier Storage.   

It soon became clear that the investor was wise to be suspicious. There is no such business as Barkingside Premier Storage and the four cases of wine is the figment of a scamster's imagination. 

The Barkingside Premier Storage website is a clone of the London City Bond (LCB) website. LCB is a legitimate company and is the UK's largest bonded warehouse business, which was founded in 1870 and has a fine wine division with storage available at a number of sites as well as providing bonded warehouse facilities for the wine and spirit trade. Alf Allington is a director of LCB and Ben Jones is a former director. Neither have any connection with Barkingside Premier Storage.

It is instructive to compare the two websites to see that Barkingside is a direct copy of LCB.     

The scamsters behind Barkingside Premier Storage website, which is hosted by godaddy.com, have used the text from the LCB with out their permission and knowledge. 

Details of Barkingside Premier Storage site
(registered 27th May 2020) hosted by GoDaddy. 

However, LCB is now aware of the scam Barkingside Premier Storage site and on 29th July 2020 they wrote to all of their private customers warning them Barkingside Premier Storage was a scam. Although Barkingside copied LCB's text they have no access to LCB's customers' data. 

So what's the scam?

The four case of Bordeaux do not exist and Barkingside Premier Storage, which has  no entry on the register of UK companies, certainly does not have a warehouse at 565 Ripple Road, Dagenham RM6 4QL – Barkingside's address included in Wickham's email. As the satellite photo above shows No 565 is a private house beside the busy A13 hardly a suitable premises for the 'largest and most successful privately-owned tax warehousing company in the UK'....... However, the postcode (RM6 4QL) given by Wickham is not for Ripple Road but for The Coppins, Chadwell Avenue, Romford RM6 4QL.

This is 'white knight' operation and almost certainly an advance fee fraud. The investor will be told that to sell or get hold of their 'wine' they will need to pay a fee .... The wine, however, is very unlikely to be sold nor and it is equally unlikely that will they see these four cases of fine Bordeaux.  

The telephone number (020-7971 1208) for Barkingside is listed by Who Called Me? as 'dangerous': 

Barkingside Premier Storage claim that 'We trade under the current conditions and contracts of the UK Warehousing Association and Road Haulage Association'. Another highly unlikely claim.

I trust that LCB can get the Barkingside scam site closed down. They have been in touch with godaddy who host the Barkingside scam site. My strong advice is to steer well clear of Barkingside Premier Storage. 

Update: victims of other companies contacted

Following a tweet about the Barkingside Premier Storage scam, it is now clear that clients of Imperial Fine Wines Ltd, which changed its name on 10.1.2017 to Imperial Wine & Spirits Merchant, has also been contacted by Barkingside. The accounts and confirmation statement for Imperial are both overdue and a compulsory strike off has been suspended (8.5.2019). 

A client of the well-established and legitimate Ditton Wine Company also received an email (above) from Daniel Wickham (unlikely to be his real name) claiming that Barkingside had some stock for him. The client was advised that this was a scam. 

Warning of this scam sent to members of Wine Owners(24.8.2020): 

   Barkingside Premier Storage has been invited to comment.

 

 

More screen grabs from the scam TMT Investments Ltd site

 

Virtual office on 37th Floor, 1 Canada Square, London. E14 5AB 

RZ, a client of bust European Fine Wines, who had sparked my first post on the Barkingside Premier Storage scam was duly contacted by 'TMT Investments Ltd'. They were told that they had a buyer for their four cases of Bordeaux that had miraculously turned up at Barkingside Premier Storage....

RZ told investdrinks: 'They claim Waldorf Astoria hotel group has offered £22,894 for the wine. Buyer will pay them 7% fee. I have to pay £2,747 deposit first They are sending through terms. There’s an escrow arrangement so my wine is safe (LoL) until buyer pays. TMT will the inspect. If OK I will sign ownership over to buyer and get paid. If not OK - I will get my deposit back.They are sending terms now and want deposit today.....

RZ correctly concluded: 'I think the con is that I have to pay a 12% refundable deposit - which they claim I get back if the deal doesn't go through...'

The whole 'deal' is a complete fantasy– the wine doesn't exist nor does Barkingside Premier Storage. The four cases of Bordeaux could be bought from legitimate wine merchants for £19930 (checked through wine-searcher) – substantially below the offer of £22,894 through 'TMT'. RZ challenged the higher valuation 'TMT' salesman played up the higher value as the end user (ie Waldorf Astoria group) will be selling on at "the sort of prices you would see in hotel/bars"!! LOL!! 

TMT soon sent their invoice, terms and conditions and a letter apparently signed by Ronald Terence Stocker (director).

It was this letter that made me think that TMT Investments Ltd might when have been cloned. It is rare for fraudsters to use their real names but here was Stocker signing a letter promoting an advance fee fraud!  Checking through Companies House showed that 70-year-old Stocker was a director of 10 companies including Screen & Music Travel Ltd and D.T. Properties, which all looked to be legitimate companies. Furthermore TMT Investments Ltd is a property company and none of Stocker's companies are connected to wine. It seemed highly unlikely and curious that a 70-year-old based in Berkhamstead would be actively involved with these fraudsters, who are probably in their 20s and 30s and likely to be based in Bromley or Croydon. 

The signature on the letter was the real giveaway. Looking at Stocker's signature at a number of documents filed with Companies House over more than a decade the signature on the letter (26.8.2020) bears no relation to Stocker's habitual signature, which has remained consistent.

Terence Stocker's signature: 17.3.2020 

Scam letter – 26th August 2020: 

investdrinks has passed these details of this advance fee fraud onto Glen Turrell-Oldacre, who is a member of the Serious Fraud and Cyber Unit of Hertfordshire Police based at Welwyn Garden City. Glen is a specialist in cloned companies. He can be contacted on 01707-638417, mobile: 07590-461505, email: glen.turrell-oldacre@herts.pnn.police.uk

                                         

Following on from Barkingside Premier Storage cloning the legitimate London City Bond website, a new clone bonded warehouse site – Metropolitan Bond – was registered on 28th August 2020.

Again as was the case with Barkingside the Metropolitan Bond website is a direct copy of the LCB site. 

'About' from the LCB site

Metropolitan Bond
Same words, same people:
Ben Jones and Alf Allington
A rip off copy

Metropolitan Bond claims to be based at 83 Baker Street in the West End of London. Anyone knowing anything about bonded warehouses would know that this is ridiculous. Bonded warehouses need a substantial space, especially one that sets out the Key Facts above – again a direct rip-off from the LCB site. Unsurprisingly 83 Baker Street is a virtual office/serviced office – not a bonded warehouse....

It looks like the clowns who put together the Metropolitan Bond website were in such a rush that they just copied their previous website Barkingside Premier Storage. Unfortunately they neglected to replace Barkingside Premier Storage with Metropolitan Bond in the section on Insurance: 

Metropolitan site: 'At one time Barkingside did offer...'
'This led Barkingside Premier Storage...'

 Metropolitan site: 'It is therefore important to note
that Barkingside Premier Storage....

Barkingside site: 'It is therefore important to note
that Barkingside Premier Storage....

LCB site (the original source):
'It is therefore important to note
that LCB....'

Scott Killick:

We are writing to you today in reference to a number of complaints highlighting the gorowing frustration surrounding 'European Fine Wines'. We understand a large percentage of clients have been patiently awaiting an update in regard to their assets, currently being stored with us under the 'European Fine Wines' company account.

For almost 36 months we have been working and collaborating with relevant parties to provide clients with a solution. We have now reached a point where clients can expect to have some level of insight in regard to their investment. In addition to the court delays, our main concern was allocating the wines that have been paid for but not officially assigned to clients. Through an extensive and thorough investigation, we have now managed to allocate a large bulk of clients' wines, which were initially frozen and seized within our administrator accounts. We can now confirm that the courts have given us the go ahead to officially release these wines from the bonded account in which they are currently being held.'
 

Killick's fantasy narrative continues for several more paragraphs.. What a shame that Killick has spent nearly 36 months on this project. Instead he ought to have contacted the liquidator who could have put him straight:

Note from the Liquidator's latest report:

 

 

Important statement and clarification:

From the Liquidator's report (above) for period 25.6.19/ 24.6.20 

Note (17th August 2020) to all known members and creditors: 

'I have been made aware that a number of investors have been approached by parties purporting to have located customer's wine in storage, or acting either on behalf of or in succession to Abbott Fielding in an attampt to extract money with the promise of the release of wine they have located or sale of the wine to a buyer. Please  be aware I will never ask creditors to pay any money to release wine or the payment of a dividend. I also have no intention in appointing a 3rd party to act on my behalf to release the wine of funds.

I can confirm that all the wine purchased by the Company has been sold and I am not awre of any wine held in bonded warehouses or overseas.'

 

Metropolitan Bond - same words,
same people: Ben Jones and Alf

 Scam Alert

Yesterday I received the email below from someone (JR) who had been emailed by 'Linda Parker' (almost certainly not her real name), an 'administrator' in the supposed 'Financial Investigations Unit, FILS Administration & Investigations' of 'Fidelity International'.

'May or may not interest you

Email from Linda Parker: 

Begin forwarded message:

From: Linda Parkinson <admin@filsadministration.com>

Subject: URGENT RESPONSE REQUIRED

Date: 21 October 2020 at **:**:04 BST

To:  

                                       PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL

                        Do not circulate information contained in this email.

                   This email contains information Solely for the named persons and no other.

Dear  

Ref:  CW-341-POL

We are currently upholding a financial investigation of a highly sensitive nature, we are not investigating yourself but we hold information that we would like to discuss with you at your earliest convenience.

Due to the nature of our enquiries we do apologize for being quite limited in this email.

Yours Sincerely

Linda Parker.

Administrator.

Phone: +44 203 740 4635

Financial Investigations Unit.

FILS Administration & Investigations

JR was right to be suspicious. Linda Parker and the Financial Investigations Unit,
FILS Administration & Investigations is a scam – pretending to be part of Fidelity International. Checking on the phone number given by Linda Parker using the Who called me site shows that the number is rated as 'dangerous'. 

I suspect that this scam is a combination of advanced fee fraud and making JR's wine disappear through a putative wine deal that would rapidly go sour once any wine had been transferred to the fraudsters. 

As JR found out their website was only registered on 7th October 2020:  

 Following JR notifying WIX, the web hosting company, the site has disappeared: 

Fidelity appears to have been a target of scamsters for a while – not just wine but also cash ISAs offering an attractive rate of return. See warning from FCA in 2019:

Warning by FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) on 23rd July 2019.

Details of clone site 23.7.2019:

Back in July 2019 the scam contact was an 'Edward Harley'. 

Details of the real Fidelity Group (authorised by the FCA):  

Tips from Fidelity on avoiding scams. Their telephone numbers are: 017323-61144 or 0333-3003350.   

As we head into the last two months of this strange year there is no sign of us 'turning the corner' in the fight against Covid-19 as the deadly joker in the White House likes to claim. Instead, looking at Europe, many countries are seeing a second wave with much higher daily infection rates than those during the first wave. Thankfully death rates are considerably lower than they were earlier in the year – at least for the moment. Hopefully this is because we have learnt to treat those with severe cases of the virus more effectively.

Covid in Europe – daily figures in selected countries
Table 1: 1st wave – maximum daily new infections + maximum number of deaths during one day.
Table 2: 2nd wave – new infections on 25th October + maximum number of deaths during one day.


These two tables show no sign of life getting back to what we used to consider normal. Only Norway and Sweden (just) have a lower rate of infections in the 2nd Wave than in the first. Instead we are seeing new restrictions being widely introduced. Zooming in' Christmas and New Year celebrations look to beckon......

We are now back in the Scottish Highlands, which like the rest of Scotland with the exception of the Central Belt, now has the following rules for hotels, pubs and restaurants and general socialising:

Nationwide (excepting central belt areas):

• pubs, bars, restaurants and cafes may only open indoors between 6am and 6pm, with no sales of alcohol
• pubs, bars, restaurants and cafes may open outdoors until 10pm, with sales of alcohol (where licensed)
• takeaways (including from pubs and restaurants) can continue
• evening meals may be served in accommodation for residents only but no alcohol can be served
• current meeting rules, maximum of six people from two households, continue to apply
• specific life events, such as weddings and funerals, may continue with alcohol being served, with current meeting rules for these events (20 person limit in regulated premises only)

The rules for the Central Belt between Edinburgh and Glasgow, easily the most populous Scottish region are stricter. Here pubs, restaurants and bars are closed but can continue to offer takeaway meals. Cafés can open for a limited period but can't sell alcohol.

These rules will apply until 2nd November when a a Five Tier system will be introduced – it's three in England. Scottish independence beckons......
Already the rules are complicated – I suspect that the various Covid-19 rules, regulations and restrictions will provide a rich vein for TV quiz shows for decades to come......

Early Saturday evening we had a drink at the Glen Hotel in Newtonmore– sitting outside in the tent structure, which fortunately includes a heater. Once we had signed in on-line we could order drinks. We couldn't go inside as we were not resident, so had to remain outside seated at a table and ring a bell for service. The Glen is still doing takeaways. However, we couldn't have eaten any takeaway meal under the tent as it is part of licensed premises but if we were staying there overnight we could have ordered a meal and eaten it under the tent with an alcoholic drink. Residents can eat inside but have to enjoy their meal without alcohol. The Glen is serving lunch – inside and also outside for those that want an alcoholic drink with their meal.

Alfresco dining over the winter is not ideal in the Scottish Highlands. However the Scots are a hardy race – they have to be.....

Some local options in Newtonmore area:

It is quite easy to find locally made beer as there is a brewery – Cairngorm Brewery Company – in nearby Aviemore. On Saturday night we enjoyed a pint of their Trade Winds. Usually the Glen has a good selection of cask beers but because of the Covid restrictions they are only stocking one as cask beers have a limited life.

The nearest best known whisky distillery is 10 miles away – Dalwhinnie – one of Diageo's classic malts, which can't really be counted as a small artisan producer......

Nearby Kingussie has an excellent butcher – Donald Gilmour. As well as the normal range of meats, he has very good venison, black pudding – a speciality – and steak pies. Normally at this time of year he would have game – grouse, pheasant etc. but because of the Covid restrictions there have been no shoots so no game for the moment.

A recent addition in Kingussie has been this specialist cheese shop (above) with a good cheese selection along with a limited range of wines and other treats.

There have been some Covid winners among them this mobile fish van run by George delivering wonderful fresh fish from Portsoy. After many years working for another firm George set up on his own last year and has done very well from the Covid pandemic as people are happy to buy from a supplier that comes to their home.

There is, however, an important caveat to the call to support small producers and local shops – in the UK you need a certain income to be able to afford to buy from specialist food shops rather a supermarket, especially from a discounter like Aldi or Lidl. Unfortunately Covid has forced more UK families into food poverty and stopping kids from starving during the holidays has rightly become a major crisis for the Johnson 'government' following their refusal to finance meal vouchers for hungry kids in England during school holidays. 

This post was originally published on Les 5 du Vin. 

Update:
From Monday 2nd November the Highlands of Scotland will be in Tier 1. Five Tiers (0-4) come into force on Monday. In Tier 0 life is close to normal . 

Level 1: rules
'Under level one rules no in-home socialising is permitted, with limited exceptions. Groups of six from a maximum of two households are able to gather in indoor and outdoor public settings.

The sale of food and alcohol is permitted in indoor and outdoor venues, though a 10.30pm curfew is in place for all hospitality settings.

Scam Alert Warning

If you are contacted by Barrett Storage or
anyone associated with it put the phone down.
It's a fake site. 
It's purpose could be to assist
advance fee fraud.   

Barrett Storage, which claims to be based at 162 Bidder Street, London E16 4ST, is the latest scam bonded warehouse website. It is the third known instance of fraudsters cloning the UK's largest legitimate bonded warehouse company – London City Bond (LCB). Barrett Storage's website was created on 12th October 2020.

Barrett Storage joins the two other cloned sites: Barkingside Premier Storage and Metropolitan Bond, which were also exposed by investdrinks. Interestingly both the Barkingside and Metropolitan websites now seem to have disappeared. 

Just as was the case for Barkingside and Metropolitan the text on the site has been lifted directly from the LCB site:

Cloned text ripped off by these jokers:

'In 1870 whom amongst our founding fathers could have imagined the prodigious success which today’s Barrett Storage has become? Starting originally as bargees on the Thames, they graduated to become the pre-eminent bonded warehouse keepers in the Port of London. For over a century, they served the wine and spirit trade with its very different needs.'

The original London Bond text: 

'In 1870 whom amongst our founding fathers could have imagined the prodigious success which today’s LCB has become? Starting originally as bargees on the Thames, they graduated to become the pre-eminent bonded warehouse keepers in the Port of London. For over a century, they served the wine and spirit trade with its very different needs.'

The only difference between the two 'about' texts is that Barrett Storage has replaced LCB in the first sentence. 

It is clear that Barrett Storage is the work of the scamsters who set up the two previous bonded warehouse storage sites:

 'They will join you after you take the first step!' - Metropolitan home page

 'They will join you after you take the first step!' - Barrett home page

Location... location...

Barrett Storage's address is in the industrial part of Canning Town in East London. 160 and 162 Bidder Street appears to be part of a large business park where a number of companies are based including the long established Pierone Nightspot, which features African music. I think it is highly unlikely that Barrett Storage   

Above and below 162 Bidder Street, London E16 4ST

On Friday I was contacted by WV, whose late father unfortunately bought a number of years ago some wine from scam investment companies. She had recently received a letter (see part below) sent to her late father's address by Storage Resources.

The letter from 'Paul Foley, Director' claims that Storage Resources has wine in its storage facility belonging to clients of Imperial Fine Wine Ltd. It now possible for clients to claim their outstanding funds, except for those who 'holdings have unfortunately been sold by the director of Imperial Fine Wines Ltd'. The clients will be reimbursed through 'Equity Partners Group' who apparently 'have been appointed and authorised by the Insolvency Service to assist in the sale of assets and the reimbursement of client capital. (Equity Partners Group - Tel: 0203 488 8049). 

Foley explains that the delay in clients getting their funds back is because of 'the liquidation of Imperial Fine Wines''predominantly due to the pending high court claim held against the company and its sole director (Mr Pan Wong).

WV was told that there was '£43,750 from wine they have sold but I need to pay £3500 to get that money. I need to pay Equity Partners Group'. She was told that the £3500 would go into a escrow account was refundable once the transfer of the capital sum. WV duly received documentation from 'Equity Partners Group Ltd' with a letter signed by the 'director'. WV thought this arrangement was strange so contacted me. 

There are a number of very curious aspects to this 'narrative'.

So where start? Well let's first have a look at Imperial Fine Wines Ltd. The company was founded in November 2012 with Pan Pan Wong, who lives in Hong Kong, as the sole director. The company filed accounts for every year for 2013 through to 2017. On 15.4.2018 Wong applied to have the company voluntarily struck off, which duly happened on 7th August 2018. Curiously Storage Resources fail to mention that Imperial Fine Wines Ltd never traded– all the filed accounts were for a dormant company. Thus there was no liquidation process, no high court claim either against the company or its sole director. 

Nor, of course, was there any wine to be sold. The £43,750 cannot exist either: it is just bait for an advance fee fraud. 

Now let us turn our attention to Storage Resources. It is just as well there is no wine because Storage Resources does not have a bonded warehouse facility in Harlow.

No storage facility in Harlow – surely there must be some mistake as their website waxes lyrical over the ideal conditions they offer for storing wine. Time to compare and contrast:

Storage Resources:

'Our Cellar

Fine wine often improves with time, but ageing in the wrong conditions can irreversibly compromise your collection and investment. At 55° we understand how the wine evolves in the bottle.

​Our facility’s 20-inch thick walls and insulated interior walls are supplemented by refrigeration for an ideal cellar environment.  The sturdy stone building also protects wine from potentially harmful natural light and vibration.

​Vital Conditions

​The key to proper wine storage is providing an ideal and unchanging environment, one that allows the wine to age slowly and gracefully.

​Climate: It is generally agreed that temperatures from 55° to 59° allow wines to develop at an optimum rate. Higher temperatures will age wine prematurely, devaluing and shortening a wine's lifespan.  55°’s cellar features thermostat-controlled refrigeration which provides excellent air circulation (important for controlling mildew) and ensures even temperature distribution throughout.

Light: Light can prematurely age wine, even when the exposure is very brief. Our stone cellar prevents natural light penetration; we use low-intensity lighting throughout to provide the greatest degree of protection.

​Vibration: Vibration can affect the equilibrium and development of wine. Our solid stone walls and concrete flooring minimize movement within the cellar.

Security: For the utmost protection, our facility is equipped with state-of-the-art infrared motion detectors and security alarm systems. Each locker is secured with an individual padlock and key, and all conditions are monitored 24 hours a day.'

 

Contrast this text from 55˚:

With the exception of 'Built in 1889 as a brandy storage warehouse' the rest is a direct copy of 55˚, a wine storage facility in Napa, California that was established 15 years ago. 

 

 

 

Not only have Storage Resources purloined text from 55˚ they have also pinched their photos:

In summary Storage Resources have copied texts from three Californian storage facilities – 55˚, Armored Storage in Lane County and Vinfolio– plus just for good measure copied a text from London City Bond on deliveries. Amusingly whoever did the copying for Storage Resources forgot to take out the Californian place names such as Eugene and Lane County – somewhat of a giveaway. 

However, the most glaring error is to have left in the Californian earthquake – the first time I was aware that Harlow in the UK was also affected by the tremors:

Storage Resources: 2014 Napa Earthquake – 'only 17 were damaged'

Vinfolio: 2014 Napa Earthquake – 'only 17 were damaged'

Finally what about the Equity Partners Group Ltd? At first sight this company's apparent involvement is a bit of a puzzle, especially as Storage Resources story about funds available from wine sold from a company that never traded. The answer is, however, simple. Just as Storage Resources has used texts from four storage companies, they have cloned Equity Partners Group Ltd and taken over its identity in a classic scam. I should stress that I am sure that Equity Partners Group Ltd and its director are innocent victims of this scam.

Equity Partners Group Ltd was founded in May 2009. Its registered office is at accountants Aston Shaw in Norwich and appears to be based in Great Yarmouth 

 

 

A Google search throws up an address at 1 Trafalgar Square, Northumberland Avenue, London WC2N 5BW with a London phone number. Interestingly the supposed 'Equity Partners Group' website that was accessible on Saturday has been unobtainable since Sunday. This website claimed that Equity Partners Group Ltd is a financial services company offering funds along with advice on ISA's and pensions. Naturally the fake company isn't approved by the FCA (Financial Services Authority) to offer financial advice. 

 

The clincher that the identity of Equity Partners Group Ltd has been cloned by the fraudsters behind Storage Resources is that the signature of the 'director' on the letter with accompanying documents sent to WV does not match the signature of the real director on documents filed with Companies House.

 

Storage Resources is an advance fee fraud – please avoid!

 

   

 

   

 

  

 

 

 

   

There are times when you just have to salute and admire the eye-watering progress made by a young company. Step forward Alex John Bond's London City Vintners Ltd. The company was formed on 19th August 2019. Bond became a director on 19th November 2019. Just four months later the UK and the rest Europe was in lock down due to the COVID pandemic. 

For many fledgling companies lock down would have been catastrophic. Apparently not so for for Bond's London City Vintners Ltd who according to their website have 'due to our close relationship with Bordeaux's top négociants''we have exclusive access to specific vintages from the region's finest vineyards'. Furthermore 'Due to our close relationship with Bordeaux's top négociants we are able to supply some of the region's most exclusive and sought after wines in volumes that no other vintner can match'. 

One has to wonder why long established UK merchants haven't managed to negotiate similarly favourable deals...

 

'Why store your wine at the London City Vintners?'
'In addition to the exceptional natural characteristics of our storage we rely on the latest technology to guarantee the all criteria and in particular avoid rotting of boxes, boxes and labels as well as the proliferation of odor.'

Rather curiously the photo Bond has chosen to illustrate his storage facility appears to be one of a sparkling wine cellar with the bottles maturing on their sides and a couple of wooden pupitres at the far end of the shot. Possibly Bond hasn't yet had time to take a photo of his storage facility... 

No employees...

(Please note that this post is a work in progress with some additional material added in the next few days.) 

On 1st April 2021 (April Fools Day) the recently created (8th March 2021) Wine Buyers Group Ltd acquired the website of Winebuyers Ltd for £145,000, which was agreed at a meeting of creditors two days before had passed a resolution that the company should be wound up. A Statement of Affairs, signed by Ben Revell, director, shows that Winebuyers Ltd has a deficiency of £1,548712.07. How fortunate that Winebuyers Group Ltd with a new director – Kyle Fordham–  has been able to rise gracefully unencumbered by the £1.548 million debt owed to trade creditors....! 

Winebuyers Ltd
The company started life as LX Management Ltd on 8th October 2015 with Benjamin Allan Edward Revell (DOB: 2.12.1988) as the sole director with a service address at a semi-detached house in Harlow, Essex. Share capital was a single £1 share held by Ben Revell – occupation retail manager. 

The company name was changed to Winebuyers Ltd on 18.9.2017. By April 2018 Winebuyers Ltd had successfully raised £568,870 through Crowdcube Capital Ltd:

Crowdfunding through Crowdcube:  

Winebuyers Pitch through Crowdcube:'

'Winebuyers connects vineyards and wine merchants directly to the end consumer, cutting out the middleman and enabling customers to purchase directly from source for no extra fee. Custom API's automate the process, currently pulling 27,000 bottles and £10.5m stock from 183 vendors in 38 countries.'

'Idea

Our aim at Winebuyers is simple: bring wine into the 21st century.

We connect vineyards and wine merchants directly to the end consumer through our e-commerce platform.

We are customer focused, working on a completely transparent model, we don’t mark up prices or charge commission on any item sold. We cut out the middleman, enabling our members to buy wines at exactly the same price as they would from the vendors themselves.

We obtain our revenue from charging vineyards and wine merchants a monthly subscription fee to be listed on the site. This model is new to the industry, giving smaller vineyards and sellers the opportunity to reach audiences they otherwise could not.

Members in turn can purchase directly from the source with no additional fees. Without the overheads associated with holding stock, we can afford to work on a PCM subscription basis providing a mutually beneficial relationship to all involved.

We currently offer over 27,000 different wines from 183 vendors representing 38 countries who together have a total stock value of over £10.5m. Loans exist.

Over £180k was committed to R&D work alone in 2016 and 2017, which has laid the foundations for the business model. There are currently 150,000 different winemakers globally, providing ideal scope for expansion.

We want wine from all over the world to be accessible to everyone who’s as passionate about wine as we are.'

• Winebuyers.com lists 27,000 bottles and £10.5m stock from 183 vendors
• 150,000 winemakers globally, industry to be worth over $400bn by 2022
• Scalable model - Experienced team - 2,700 suppliers already registered
• Custom API's automate the entire process minimising costs on all sides'

One would expect Winebuyers Ltd' pitch for funding to be very positive. Unfortunately Winebuyers Ltd's accounts told a rather different story. The company only made a profit in its first year of operation (accounts to 31.10.16) – £3159 in its profit and loss account filed 27.6.17. Thereafter it was a case of escalating losses:

Accounts to 31.10.17 – (£62,827) in its profit and loss account filed 27.11.17.
Accounts to 31.10.18 – (£515,262) in its profit and loss account filed 25.7.19
Accounts to 31.10.19 – (1,297,450) in its profit and loss account filed 30.10.20

By 2019 there were the first rumours of suppliers not being paid. This accelerated in 2020 into early 2021. Also numerous Trustpilot reviews showed that customers were not get the wines they had ordered. On 25th February 2021 The Drinks Business reported that Winebuyers Ltd had six County Court judgments against it totaling £42,384.
 

30th April 2021: Creditors' Resolution to wind up Winebuyers Ltd and liquidator appointed.
31st April 2021: Creditors/ liquidation committee established 

Ben Revell's Statement of Affairs 23rd March 2021

Trade creditors
The list of company creditors runs to eight pages with a further 11 pages giving details of shareholders. prominent among the trade creditors are:

Knotel UK Ltd: £244,282
('tailoring workspaces to the unique needs of established and growing companies. From space to services, we give companies the freedom and flexibility to grow and adapt to today’s ever-evolving workplace demands.')

H & H Fine Wines: £120,018 

Enotria & Coe: £96,643.82

Blueshift Labs Inc (San Francisco): £33,118.
'Discover how you can intelligently collect, unify, and access a 360-degree view of each customer and start delivering truly connected omnichannel experiences.'

Barclays (Hammersmith): £77,930

decantalo (Barcelona): £70,592

Great Wines Direct: £64,863

WeWork: New York  £46,708 
'flexible work spaces'

Atom Group (owns of Master of Malt): £35,725

Stature PR Co (London): £25,116

Museum Wines: £15,813

Honest Grapes: £15,298

Petersham Cellar: £15,200

Latin-wines-online: £15,112.77

Other creditors?
There are only trade creditors listed in Ben Revell's of Affairs Statement, so mention of customers who ordered wine and have received nothing part from broken promises as a number of reviews on Trustpilot show. Those who crowdfunded Winebuyers to at least £568,870 will also be out of pocket – the Statement of Affairs. 

These shareholders may well be more than interested that the Financial Ombudsman in May 2021 upheld a complaint from someone who invested in a company through Crowdcube Capital Ltd.  Part of the Ombudsman's decision is given below.

'As explained in my provisional decision - given the generally higher risk nature of these investments, and the likelihood that these companies might fail, I consider there was an equal chance he may have lost some or all of his investment had he invested in another crowdfunding opportunity other than in Company A. I acknowledge that he might also have made a return. But without the benefit of hindsight, it simply isn’t possible for me to fairly establish what return he would likely have made, if any. For these reasons, I consider that fair and reasonable compensation be a return of Mr S’s initial investment, subject to the deduction of any tax relief that he claimed at that time.

my final decision
For the reasons given above, I uphold this complaint and direct Crowdcube Capital Limited to put things right as set out above. Under the rules of the Financial Ombudsman Service, I’m required to ask Mr S to accept or reject my decision before 12 April 2021.'

Ben Waites Ombudsman

Press coverage:
Positive:  
Unfortunately Ben Revell managed to get some uncritical press coverage. Here are some examples:

Sky News Ian King live https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlbSJvn9GUM

Financial Times: September 9th 2020

If Revell is 'still in the business' in 10 years times, how many times will an incarnation of Winebuyers risen from the ashes? 

Negative:
Fortunately there were other less gushing more critical journalists mainly in the drinks trade press: 

The Drinks Business 5th February 2021

Trustpilot Reviews (to follow)

Winebuyers Group – same fate?
This recently minted company was set up on 8th March 2021 just 22 days before Winebuyers Ltd (Mark 1) went into liquidation. The sole director is Kyle Fordham (DOB: 6.1989) who holds the single £1 share and has 'significant control' of the company. The registered office is Kemp House, 160 City Road London, EC1V 2NX – a virtual office company.

Nigel Huddleston reports in his fine article – Winebuyers reboot raises questions – that it was agreed that Ben Revell would not be involved in the new Winebuyer Group Ltd (Winebuyers Mark 2). Instead Huddleston reports that at least until July Revell has been signing himself as the CEO of Winebuyers Group. So it may be that Revell is the shadow director and Kyle Fordham as the patsy...?   

Who is Kyle Fordham?

Does anyone know a Kyle Fordham?

'a turbulent few months in 2020'...

Revell's continued involvement in Winebuyers Group Ltd is confirmed by an email exchange between Winebuyers Group and Stone, Vine & Son. The exchange also illustrates why it will be very difficult for Winebuyers Mark 2 to get anyone to work with them.

Kaitlyn appears to be desperate as she is still chasing Stone, Vine & Son:

They never give up!   Arrived 5 minutes ago…

From: Kaitlyn Halleran [mailto:kaitlyn.halleran@winebuyers.com] 
Sent: 02 September 2021 16:06
To: Sales
Subject: Re: Winebuyers keen to list your products.

Prestigious Wine Ltd
This is Ben Revell's other company, which according to the FT article, was the best preparation for Revell through 'buying and selling investment wines online'.

Although Revell claims that he had 'a very crude UK website' a Google search doesn't list a website for Prestigious Wine Ltd (created 1.8.2013). Also the filed accounts indicate that the company never did very much business despite Revell's £300,000 worth of stock. From the accounts to 31.7.17 the busiest year appears to have been 2016-2017 with total net assets listed as £8329. Ben Revell (DOB: 2.12.1988) and Bonnie Revell (12.12.1958) are the two directors with a Peter Revell as company secretary. Interestingly a Peter Revell of Flat 1, Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9JN is listed as a creditor of Winebuyers Ltd owed £110,359. On 23th July 2021 Bonnie and Ben Revell applied to have the Prestigious Wine Ltd struck off.     

Conclusion:
From the accounts for both Winebuyers Ltd and Prestigious Wine Ltd filed with Companies House UK I can find no evidence that Ben Revell can run a successful business, although he does have an ability to run up large debts, instead he appears to be good a PR and promotion. 

Would I buy wine from Winebuyers Group Ltd? No way!

Would I invest in Winebuyers Group Ltd? You must be joking!  

If I was wine producer/ wine merchant/ spirits producer/ spirits merchant would I supply Winebuyers Ltd? You cannot be serious!