Oroton creditors back $25m rescue plan

Oroton creditors have voted in favour of a $25 million rescue plan which will safeguard jobs and return between 36 and 58 cents in the dollar to creditors.

A file image of signage at an Oroton store

Oroton creditors have backed a $25m rescue plan that will hand control to a major shareholder. (AAP)

Oroton creditors have backed a $25 million rescue plan that will hand control of the luxury handbag retailer to major shareholder Will Vicars and safeguard 350 jobs.

The 80-year-old company, which slipped into administration in November amid declining sales, will transfer into private ownership under the deed that will return between 36 and 58 cents in the dollar to creditors.

Creditors voted in support of Mr Vicars' rescue plan at a meeting in Sydney on Thursday and a court process will now take place to transfer all Oroton's ASX-listed shares to his organisation.

Mr Vicars, the co-chief executive of Caledonia Funds Management, already owns 18.2 per cent of the shares.

The luxury handbag retailer went into a trading halt on November 28 with its shares valued at 43.5 cents, 85 per cent lower than a year earlier.

It slipped into voluntary administration two days later after sinking to a $14.3 million full-year loss on the back of weak sales, a failed Gap apparel venture, and a precarious debt situation.

At the time, 557 staff were employed at its head office and across 62 stores in Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia - with another 240 working at Gap.

Deloitte previously said 264 staff had been made redundant as a result of the wind down of the Gap joint venture, and another 10 from either Oroton head office or its stores.


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Source: AAP


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