MIRA
INFORM REPORT
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Report Date : |
29.03.2007 |
IDENTIFICATION
DETAILS
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Name : |
WOOLWORTHS GROUP ASIA LTD. |
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Registered Office : |
28/F, 625 King's Road, North Point, Island East |
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Country : |
Hong Kong |
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Date of Incorporation : |
22-2-2002 |
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Com. Reg. No.: |
786810 |
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Legal Form : |
Private Limited Company |
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Line of Business : |
Runs as a product sourcing and buying office for SC's group |
RATING &
COMMENTS
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MIRA’s Rating : |
Ba |
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RATING |
STATUS |
PROPOSED CREDIT LINE |
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41-55 |
Ba |
Overall operation is considered normal. Capable to meet normal
commitments. |
Satisfactory |
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Status : |
Satisfactory |
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Payment Behaviour : |
Usually correct |
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Litigation : |
Clear |
name & address
WOOLWORTHS GROUP ASIA LTD.
28/F, 625 KING'S ROAD,
NORTH POINT, ISLAND EAST, HONG KONG.
TEL : 852 34162300
FAX : 852 34162399 /25909938
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
INCORPORATION DATE : 22-2-2002
REGISTRATION NO. :
786810
REGISTERED LEGAL FORM :
PRIVATE LIMITED CO.
CHIEF EXECUTIVE : TSOI KEUNG (DIRECTOR)
STAFF STRENGTH :
65
AUTHORIZED CAPITAL : HKD $1,000 = 1,000 SHARES @ HKD $1.-
PAID-UP CAPITAL : HKD $1,000
BUSINESS LINE :
BUYING OFFICE
TURNOVER :
GBP2,737M (GROUP, AS OF 3-2-2007)
EQUITIES : N/A (AS OF
3-2-2007)
PAYMENT :
AVERAGE
RECOMM. CREDIT RANGE :
MODERATE AMOUNT
MARKET CONDITION :
COMPETITIVE
FINANCIAL CONDITION :
STABLE
OPERATIONAL TREND :
FAIRLY STEADY
GENERAL REPUTATION :
AVERAGE
EXCHANGE RATE :
HKD 7.81327 = USD1 AS OF 2007-03-29
Adopted abbreviations:
ANS - amount not stated
NS - not stated
SC - subject company (the company inquired by you)
NA - not available
M - million
HKD – Hong Kong Dollars
SC is a private limited company registered under incorporation file no.
786810 on 22-2-2002.
SC's shareholders & directors are shown to be as follows:
Shareholders (as at 22-2-2006) Number
of shares held
Woolworths Holdings Ltd. 999
Woolworths Nominees Ltd. 1
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1,000
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Directors (as at 22-2-2006)
Tsoi Keung / K220994(2)
Ahir Bharat Kumar / R196455(A)
Robertson Neil / P181158(8)
The above registration information is based on SC's annual return filed at
Companies Registry within the last 2 years.
No material change or amendment regarding SC has been traced & noted
within last 2 years.
SC is a subsidiary of Woolworths Holdings Ltd. whose partial information
is as follows:
Year established : NA
Registered/business
address : Woolworths House, 242/246
Marylebone Road, London NW1 6JL, UK.
Business line : As an offshore holding
co.
No. of employees : None
Civil litigation & winding-up petition : None in our database
Turnover :
NA
SC, in turn, is a subsidiary of Woolworths Group plc, a public co.
listed on the London Stock Exchange with stock ticker `WLW', whose partial
information is as follows:
Year established : 1909 (founded) & 28-8-2001 (listed)
Registered/business
address : Woolworths House, 242-246
Marylebone Rd, London NW1 6JL, UK.
Business line : As an investment
holding co. with diverse interests in UK-based general merchandise retail
outlets operation, entertainment and publishing. It owns over 800 stores and
offer housewares, toys, sweet, apparel, home electronics and seasonal fare.*
No. of employees : 34,092 (year ended 29-1-2005)
Civil litigation & winding-up petition records : None in our
database
Turnover :
GBP2,737M (year ended 3-2-2007)
* The group's other retail
outlets include MVC home entertainment & electronics boutiques &
Internet Retailer Streets Online. It
also owns Entertainment UK Ltd. (EUK), the UK's largest distributor of home
entertainment products as well as music and video publisher VCI.
Partial financial data of the said company:
Items Fiscal
yr 28-1-2006 Fiscal yr 3-2-2007
Current assets : GBP804M GBP709M
Current
liabilities : GBP670M GBP658M
Fixed assets &
non-current assets : GBP393M GBP458M
Tangible
worth/(net deficit) : GBP527M GBP509M
Turnover : GBP2,631M GBP2,737M
Net income/(net
loss) : GBP10.2M GBP13.6M
GBP = British Pound
GBP1 = HKD $15.3
Major in-store brands include:
1/ Labybird - a childrenswear clothing brand for age of 0-9 years old.
2/ Gloss - a funky fashion collection designed specifically for teens
in the age of 7-11 years old.
3/ Chad Valley - comprises an extensive range of toys and games suitable
for all children from babies to boys and girls under 8 years old.
Major operating companies under Woolworths Group plc:
1/ MVC - a specialist retailer of home entertainment products including
DVDs, CDs, videos and games software.
It is currently operating 81 retail stores with an average floor area of
3,700 sq.ft.
2/ Streets Online - an online retailer of entertainment products,
including music, DVDs, videos, and games software.
3/ Entertainment UK Ltd. (EUK) - the largest distributor of home
entertainment products (DVDs, CDs, videos and games software), supplying UK's
retailers with music, video and games product.
4/ 2 Entertain - a joint venture company between Woolworths Group PLC
and BBC Worldwide Ltd. This joint
venture company combines the video and music publishing and TV/video production
businesses of the Woolworths Group subsidiary, VCI plc, with the video
publishing business of BBC Worldwide.
5/ Demon - one of the leading publishers of budget audio product, owning
and licensing extensive music titles.
6/ Banana Split - a production company specializing in the creation and
production of pre-recorded videos, feature film trailers, television
programming and advertisements.
Tsoi Keung, director:
- In his late 30's
- Embarked upon his career to present field as an executive trainee in
his mid 20's
Currently active in SC's day-to-day operations & is responsible for
its management.
Registered residential address: Flat 13A, 10 Man Wan Road, Homantin,
Kowloon, HONG KONG.
Credit history
check : This refers to a check of our
database whether the said person has been involved in any of
the following
records stored by us within the last 6 years:
Bankruptcy/winding-up
petitions : None in our database
Delinquent payment
records : None in our database
Debt collection records : No overdue amount owed by the said person was placed
to us for collection
Civil litigations : (X) see below ( ) see per
attached
Date :
28-8-2006
Defendant(s) : Tsoi Keung
Plaintiff(s) : Chau Lai Pang & Co.
Cause of claims : Dishonoured cheque
Claimed amount : ANS
We could not verify whether the defendant of the above writ record and
SC's director are one and the same person although their name spellings are
identical. In Hong Kong, the identity
card no. of defendants (individuals) in civil litigations is not disclosed for
public search.
Robertson Neil, director:
- He is by British nationality
- Embarked upon his career to present field as an executive trainee in
his mid 20's
Currently residing in UK & only visits Hong Kong for business
occasionally.
Registered residential address: 3 Jeeves Yard, Queen St., Hitchin, Herts
SG4 9TG, UK.
Credit history
check : This refers to a check of our
database whether the said person has been involved in any of
the following
records stored by us within the last 6 years:
Civil litigation
as defendants : None in our database
Bankruptcy/winding-up
petitions : None in our database
Delinquent payment
records : None in our database
Debt collection records : No overdue amount owed by the said person was
placed to us for collection
Ownership background appraisal:
Rating : 2 Obtained scores : 78 (see explanatory notes
below)
Keys : 1 : scores
81-100 : Excellent
2
: scores 61-80 : Good
3
: scores 46-60 : Average
4
: scores 21-45 : Fair
5
: scores 01-20 : Poor
The rating indicates the personal financial & operational strength
of SC's major principals. It is
calculated from a composite of scores obtained from the following 5 factors
which carry equal weight in our analysis:
Personal financial strength, credit history & trade reputation,
business experience & track record, market connection and management skill.
Our onfile records indicated that SC acts as a sourcing agency &
hence no income is generated. Its monthly
overhead is paid by its parent. The
average monthly overhead is estimated at HKD $1M.
As per current co. search, total amount of indebtedness of SC in respect
of all mortgages and charges which are required to be registered with Companies
Registry as at 22-2-2006 was nil.
Banking relations are maintained principally with: HSBC.
This section will contain the civil litigations & winding-up petitions
filed against SC for the last 6 years (as stored in our database), and the
mortgage/charge records filed by SC for the last 2 years. In Hong Kong, creation of such
mortgages/charges by an unlimited co is not required to be registered in the
public records.
Civil litigation/winding-up petitions: None in our
database.
Mortgage/charge record(s): None filed since
its incorporation date.
Overall payment appraisal :
( ) Excellent (
) Good (X) Average (
) Fair ( ) Poor
( ) Not yet determined
The appraisal serves as a reference to reveal SC's payments habits and
ability to pay. It is based on the 3
weighed factors: Trade payment
experience (through current enquiry with SC's suppliers), our delinquent payment
records and our debt collection record concerning SC.
Trade payment
experience : SC did not provide any name of
trade/service suppliers and we have no other
sources to conduct
the enquiry at present.
Delinquent
payment record : None in our database.
Debt
collection record : No overdue
amount owed by SC was placed to us for collection within the last 6 years.
Business categories:
SC mainly runs as a product sourcing and buying office for SC's group (also
known as Global Sourcing Team of Woolworths Group) which is engaged in the
retail outlets operation in UK.
The role of the Global Sourcing Team is to streamline the direct
importing process. Its primary focus is
to make additional profit for Woolworths by fully understanding how products
are manufactured and by working as closely as possible with the original
product source. They involved directly
in product sourcing, development and fulfillment, which also covers all aspects
of Quality Assurance.
Principal purchases :
Major
types of sourcing :
Merchandise
Local--type
of suppliers : Manufacturers
Buying
terms : COD,
credit of 30 days & local L/C
Overseas--supplying
countries : PR China & SE Asia
Buying terms :
L/C, T/T & open account of 30 days
Principal market :
Local--type
of customers : Nil
Selling
terms : Nil
Overseas--buying
countries : Europe (mainly UK)
Selling
terms : T/T &
intercompany account basis
Total number of employees : 65
Location : Maintaining
its office at the heading business address which occupies a gross area of 5,000
square feet at a commercial building in a commercial district.
Condition inside the premises during our
visit : Normal.
Office/factory layout : Good.
The premises is rented.
Current land search indicates that SC has
entered into a 3-year tenancy agreement with Island Land Development Ltd. (the
landlord) from 1-4-2005.
SC is not known to have any subsidiary at present.
From all indications, SC is believed to have made a steady and
successful trend of development. Credit
in the range of moderate to fairly large amount can be considered.
-- Asset Tracing --
Upon our current investigation, our database & sources consulted
indicate that SC was not involved in any property transaction (both purchase
& disposal) in Hong Kong for the last 6 years.
Woolsworths Holdings Ltd.'s share price movements are as follows:
- Closed on 28-3-2007: GBP0.3275
- Year high / low: GBP0.38/GBP0.29
- Price earning ratio: 35.278
RATING
EXPLANATIONS
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RATING |
STATUS |
PROPOSED CREDIT LINE |
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>86 |
Aaa |
Possesses an extremely sound financial base with the strongest
capability for timely payment of interest and principal sums |
Unlimited |
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71-85 |
Aa |
Possesses adequate working capital. No caution needed for credit
transaction. It has above average (strong) capability for payment of interest
and principal sums |
Large |
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56-70 |
A |
Financial & operational base are regarded healthy. General
unfavourable factors will not cause fatal effect. Satisfactory capability for
payment of interest and principal sums |
Fairly Large |
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41-55 |
Ba |
Overall operation is considered normal. Capable to meet normal
commitments. |
Satisfactory |
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26-40 |
B |
Unfavourable & favourable factors carry similar weight in credit
consideration. Capability to overcome financial difficulties seems
comparatively below average/normal. |
Small |
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11-25 |
Ca |
Adverse factors are apparent. Repayment of interest and principal sums
in default or expected to be in default upon maturity |
Limited with
full security |
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<10 |
C |
Absolute credit risk exists. Caution needed to be exercised |
Credit not
recommended |
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NR |
In view of the lack of information, we have no basis upon which to
recommend credit dealings |
No Rating |
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This score serves as a reference to assess SC’s credit risk
and to set the amount of credit to be extended. It is calculated from a
composite of weighted scores obtained from each of the major sections of this
report. The assessed factors and their relative weights (as indicated through
%) are as follows:
Financial
condition (40%) Ownership
background (20%) Payment
record (10%)
Credit history
(10%) Market trend
(10%) Operational
size (10%)