Closing my tradie business in Auckland
Been running a tradie business in Auckland for about 10 years and honestly the last 2 years have smashed us.
We currently owe roughly:
- $220k GST debt to IRD
- about $80k supplier debt
No PAYE debt and we’re still operating, still have staff, clients, good reviews/reputation, website, phones, social media etc. But I’m mentally burnt out and don’t really want to keep doing this long term anymore.
I’m trying to understand the cleanest and most responsible way to exit over the next 4–6 months.
My rough plan at the moment is:
- Cut costs hard and only focus on profitable work
- Let staff know things are slowing down so they can look elsewhere if they want
- Try sell the client base, website, branding, phone numbers, projects and assets to another company
- Use that money to pay down as much debt as possible
- Then either close the company properly or liquidate if needed
We will make sure all our current jobs are properly finished and handed over.
I understand there are laws around insolvency and creditors, so I’m not trying to do anything dodgy or hide assets. I’m just trying to understand what’s realistic and what others in NZ trades/construction have done in similar situations.
Has anyone here been through this?
- Did IRD work with you?
- Did you sell parts of the business first?
- Did you use a liquidator or restructuring advisor?
- Anything you wish you did earlier?
Would appreciate honest advice from anyone who’s been through it.