A business renovation company owned by the partner of a reality TV star is on the brink of collapse after failing to pay its debts.
Shopfit Co, run by Lachlan Waugh, professional partner of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! Australia winner Skye Wheatley, has entered external administration and has been taken over by external insolvency experts.
Shopfit Co has been responsible for completing major renovations for popular cafes, bars, restaurants and high-profile brands including Red Rooter, Quicksilver and Sass and Bide.
Mr Waugh, 34, and Ms Wheatley, 30, a successful social media star, have appeared in several renovation videos uploaded to YouTube.
The high-profile couple also purchased a luxury mansion for nearly $1 million, known as The Big House in the Gold Coast suburb of Tallai in 2019.
Mr Waugh is listed on Shopfit Co’s website as a founder and director.
Shopfit Co, which has a head office and factory in Carrara on the Gold Coast, is being placed into administration by the small business restructuring scheme that helps companies with debts of less than $1 million in a last-ditch attempt to avoid liquidation. Costa Dorada Newsletter reported.
The company’s largest creditor is the Australian Taxation Office, according to documents filed with ASIC.
Shopfit Co, run by Lachlan Waugh (pictured), partner of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! Australia winner Skye Wheatley, has entered administration
A report by administrator David Stimpson said the company had been recommended to him by corporate adviser Eventum Opium.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Shopfit Co for further comment.
The company was still uploading posts to its social media account Thursday evening.
Shopfit Co’s shareholders include Mr Waugh, its chief financial officer Dannielle Tewkesbury and operations manager Steve Wilson.
The news comes a year after Shopfit Co opened a factory in Smeaton Grange, southwest of Sydney.
The company also has building permits in Queensland and Victoria limited to the fit-out of stores.
Building permits allow Shopfit Co to carry out renovations on commercial and retail buildings restricted to two floors and a plot size of 2,000 square metres.
Its Queensland building licence allows the company to undertake shop fit-out work on buildings with a maximum turnover of between $12 million and $30 million.
According to its website, Shopfit Co has over 20 years of experience delivering “high-quality commercial projects.”
Mr Waugh began his career in the construction industry as an apprentice in 2006 before moving into managing his own projects working as a leader.
Skye Wheatley (pictured) has appeared alongside her partner in several renovation videos that have been uploaded online and the high-profile couple also purchased a luxury mansion on the Gold Coast in 2019.
His experience managing major renovation projects led him to found Shopfit Co.
According to the company’s ABN details, the business has been registered since September 2016.
Mr Waugh and the company have been locked in a long-running legal battle with wealthy Sydney businessman Danny Girgis.
Mr Waugh claims Mr Girgis and his company Kokomo Living Pty Ltd owe him a bill of $59,516.
The money allegedly owed is for interior refurbishment of the Beloporto burger bar in Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast.
Mr Girgis, who owns a $4.5 million waterfront home in Kogarah Bay, south of Sydney, and his company paid $20,000, leaving a balance of $24,279.
She has since filed a countersuit against Shopfit, admitting that while the invoices were unpaid, the company’s work was inadequate.
Shopfit Co’s collapse comes after figures revealed a staggering 2,349 construction firms will cease trading by 2023.
Insolvencies in the construction industry hit an annual record last year, with 785 construction companies listed as insolvent according to data published by ASIC.
Mr Waugh (pictured right) began his career in the construction industry as an apprentice in 2006 before moving on to manage his own projects working as a leader
The construction industry, like most small businesses and homeowners, has been hit by inflation and consecutive interest rate increases.
The RBA kept rates unchanged at a 12-year high of 4.35 percent for the seventh consecutive time at its most recent policy meeting.