Administrator confirms Lisa Ho buys IP to collapsed company’s brand name

As Lisa Ho Designs enters liquidation, it has emerged from its administrator that designer Lisa Ho has bought the intellectual property rights to the brand name.

Lisa Ho Designs entered liquidation yesterday as a result of a creditors meeting, and final entities will be wound up in the next two weeks.

Administrators Barry Taylor and Todd Gammel of HLB Mann Judd Sydney announced they reached an agreement with brand owner Lisa Ho regarding the sale of the majority of the intellectual property of the business.

Gammel told SmartCompany this morning that Ho had obtained the rights to the name and the archive of historical designs. He could not speculate on what Ho would do with the intellectual property rights, stating that was “her decision”.

The news follows the separate sale of Lisa Ho eyewear intellectual property to luxury eyewear producer and distributor Face Optics on June 28.

Gammel said in a statement the arrangement with Face Optics will result in a return to the secured creditors of the Lisa Ho business after costs.

“After the extensive sale program, we came to a position that the sale of the IP to the two separate parties was the best way of maximising value for these assets,” Gammel said.

“The arrangements also mean that there is an opportunity for the Lisa Ho brand to continue in both eyewear and clothing, notwithstanding the liquidation of the Lisa Ho Group entities and ongoing realisation of remaining assets by the liquidators.”

The Lisa Ho retail stores in Sydney and Melbourne closed on July 7, while a final warehouse sale of unsold apparel, samples, archive pieces and unused materials is underway in Surry Hills, Sydney today and tomorrow, July 12. The online retailer division has also shut down.

“New stock has continued to arrive and stock from closed stores consolidated, so there is an opportunity for a great discount on day wear, evening and bridal dresses,” Gammel said.

The chief executive officer of the Council of Textile and Fashion Industries of Australia, Richard Evans, told SmartCompany that popular brands with goodwill in the community can thrive if the name is carried on by a new business.

“Lisa Ho was a credible brand for many years and it has a goodwill following among consumers,” he says.

Lisa Ho went into administration in May this year, with around 100 staff put out of work. At the time, Taylor told SmartCompany the company had debt of around $11 million.

Last week, fellow Australian fashion brand Kirrily Johnston went into administration, part of a tough run for the fashion retail industry in recent years.