The company behind two Stirling Sports stores in Christchurch has gone into liquidation, with the liquidator warning there are unlikely to be any funds available for unsecured creditors.

Hamleigh Holdings Limited, which operated Stirling Sports outlets at The Palms and Northlands shopping centres, was placed into liquidation on 28 October 2025 following a special resolution by its sole shareholder and director, Simon Leigh.

Stores at Riccarton, Hornby & Rangiora are not affected and owned by a different company.  

Licensed insolvency practitioner Brenton Hunt of Insolvency Matters Limited was appointed liquidator. In his first report, Hunt said the company was insolvent, citing a “significantly impacted sales and cash flow” due to the economic environment, combined with rising operating expenses, supplier costs, and rent.

“The director had been attempting to sell the business for the last twelve months but was unsuccessful,” the report said.

The company ceased trading on the same day it entered liquidation. Staff were terminated and the liquidator has begun selling shop fittings and stock from both stores.

According to the report, Hamleigh Holdings owed about $650,000 to unsecured creditors, $35,000 to Inland Revenue for GST and PAYE, and about $15,000 in staff wages and holiday pay.

Secured creditors include Westpac Bank, Nike New Zealand, Adidas New Zealand, Conquest Imports, Brittain Wynyard, and Brand Collective.

The company’s total estimated shortfall to creditors is around $760,000. The liquidator said that after costs and secured claims, it was “unlikely” there would be any funds left for unsecured creditors.

Hunt said investigations were under way into the company’s trading history and the conduct of the director to determine if there had been any breaches of the Companies Act.

The company was incorporated in 2007 and traded as a sports retail business under the Stirling Sports brand for many years.

The liquidation is expected to take about twelve months to complete.