HEIGHWAY PINBALL FACES LIQUIDATION

Pinball News Website·article·analyzed·Apr 26, 2018

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.022

TL;DR

Heighway Pinball enters liquidation after financial collapse; customers and creditors face major losses.

Summary

Heighway Pinball, a British boutique pinball manufacturer based in South Wales, has closed its factory, laid off employees, and entered liquidation proceedings as of May 2018. The company, which produced Full Throttle and the long-delayed Alien, faced insurmountable financial and operational challenges including design delays, parts shortages, reliability issues, and insufficient sales to sustain operations. Founder Andrew Heighway departed in June 2017, handing the company to investor-directors who ultimately decided liquidation was necessary. Pre-order customers and creditors face significant losses.

Key Claims

Heighway Pinball factory in Ebbw Vale has closed and employees have been laid off
high confidence · Official liquidation notice from company directors convening creditor meeting
The four directors formed Pinball Brothers company at the same time they took control of Heighway Pinball
high confidence · Company registration documents cited in article
Alien game suffered from design changes, parts unavailability, mechanical device problems, and reliability issues
high confidence · Detailed historical narrative of company operations
Andrew Heighway sold his controlling stake in June 2017 to investor group; company liquidation announced May 2018
high confidence · Company timeline and Andrew Heighway's direct statement
Pre-order customers likely to lose their money in creditors' voluntary liquidation
high confidence · Analysis of liquidation type and creditor priority structure
Pinball Brothers may have reclaimed assets/equipment through separate purchase arrangements before liquidation
medium confidence · Speculative analysis based on company structure; described as 'curious' arrangement
Andrew Heighway denies Ponzi scheme allegations and states company owed him significant monies
high confidence · Direct statement from Andrew Heighway in article

Notable Quotes

“I am truly sorry to hear about the turn of events announced today... A mix of technical problems, supplier quality problems and unrealistic timeframes resulted in delays that financially crippled the company.”
Andrew Heighway @ Statement included in article — Founder's admission of responsibility for delays and unrealistic timelines that doomed the company
“This was never a ponzi scheme, as some have suggested... The company's accountants have never suggested any wrongdoings by me. It can be proven that the company owed me significant monies and not the other way round.”
Andrew Heighway @ Statement included in article — Direct rebuttal of fraud allegations circulating in community; legally protective language
“I very much regret that the company's owners have closed the company without honouring its commitments to all paying customers”
Andrew Heighway @ Statement included in article — Founder's criticism of successor investors' decision to liquidate rather than attempt recovery
“The future of Heighway Pinball has seemed in doubt for some time.”
Pinball News article author @ Main article text — Signals that company's decline was visible to industry observers prior to formal announcement
“While a trickle of Alien games was leaving the factory, ultimately the sales numbers were too low to make the business a viable operation in its current form”
Pinball News article author @ Main article text — Core cause of failure: insufficient market demand for Alien despite investment and production efforts

Entities

Heighway Pinballcompany Andrew Heighwayperson Pinball BrotherscompanyMats Daniel JansonpersonCato Paus SkredepersonAlexander Thomas SpohrpersonJohan Patrik TennpersonAliengame

Signals

?
business_signal: High staff turnover accelerated by factory relocations; key team members departed, eroding organizational capability
high · Article states 'Staff turnover at Heighway Pinball had always been relatively high, but the move 20 miles from the original base further accelerated the flow of key team members'
?
business_signal: Major boutique pinball manufacturer enters liquidation; factory closure and employee layoffs
high · Official liquidation notice; factory closure confirmed; employee layoffs stated as fact
?
community_signal: Community rumors alleged Ponzi scheme and fund diversion; founder denies allegations and claims company owed him money
high · Andrew Heighway explicitly addresses 'suggestions that I stole or diverted company funds' and Ponzi scheme allegations in public statement
$
market_signal: Cautionary tale for boutique pinball manufacturers: insufficient market demand, technical execution challenges, and investor capital insufficiency can lead to rapid failure and customer losses
high · Full article structure; positioned as case study in industry viability challenges
?
licensing_signal: Heighway Pinball held designs for licensed titles (Alien, Queen Live, Playboy) that may transfer to Pinball Brothers or other entity
medium · Article mentions 'licences were also part of that arrangement it would allow Pinball Brothers to use those parts and equipment to manufacture Alien or future licensed titles for which designs already exist such as Queen Live or Playboy elsewhere'

Topics

Liquidation and financial collapseprimaryProduct delays and design challengesprimarySupply chain and manufacturing issuesprimaryImpact on pre-order customers and creditorsprimaryFounder departure and investor transitionsecondaryPotential asset transfer to Pinball BrotherssecondaryCommunity rumors and fraud allegationssecondaryBoutique manufacturer business model viabilitymentioned

Sentiment

negative(-0.92)— Article documents catastrophic business failure with severe consequences for customers, employees, and creditors. Tone is factual and measured but subject matter is entirely adverse. Andrew Heighway's statement shows regret and defensiveness regarding fraud accusations. Community impact implied to be severe given pre-order losses and support vacuum.

Transcript

raw_text · $0.000

Heighway Pinball, the pinball design and manufacturing business based in Ebbw Vale in South Wales, has closed the doors on the factory, laid-off the employees and is facing liquidation. [![The Heighway Pinball factory in Ebbw Vale, South Wales](https://www.pinballnews.com/site/wp-content/uploads/news/heighway-pinball-facing-liquidation/01-heighway-pinball-in-liquidation-1024x683.jpg)](https://www.pinballnews.com/site/wp-content/uploads/news/heighway-pinball-facing-liquidation/01-heighway-pinball-in-liquidation.jpg) The Heighway Pinball factory in Ebbw Vale, South Wales The four Directors of the company – Mats Daniel Janson (a.k.a. Daniel Janson), Cato Paus Cato Paus Skrede, Alexander Thomas Alexander Spohr, Johan Patrik Tenn (a.k.a. Patrik Tenn) – who also formed the [Pinball Brothers company](https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/10822960), have today called a meeting of creditors of the company with the intention of appointing a liquidator. A liquidator will assess all the company’s assets and liabilities, and attempt to sell those assets in order to realise their maximum value. | | | --- | | HEIGHWAY PINBALL LIMITED (Company Number 08087382) Registered office: Midway House Herrick Way Staverton Technology Park Staverton Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL51 6TQ Principal trading address: Unit 35, Rassau Industrial Estate, Rassau, Merthyr Tydfil, Ebbw Vale NP23 5SD NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the directors of the company are convening a virtual meeting of creditors to be held on 4 May 2018 at 11.30 am, for the purpose of deciding on the nomination of a liquidator. Creditors can access the virtual meeting as follows: Contact Mark Hunt In order to be entitled to vote creditors must deliver proxies and proofs to 11 Roman Way Business Centre, Berry Hill, Droitwich, Worcestershire WR9 9AJ by 12 noon on the business day before the day of the meeting. NOTE: the meeting may be suspended or adjourned by the chair of the meeting (and must be adjourned if it is so resolved at the meeting). Further information about this case is available from Mark Hunt at the offices of MB Insolvency on 01905 776 771 or at [[email protected]](/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection) | | | It is not clear yet whether this is a Members Voluntary Liquidation (MVL) in which the proceeds of the sale of the assets would go to the owners of Heighway Pinball, or a Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation (CVL) in which it is the creditors who receive the proceeds. If Heighway Pinball is solvent (i.e. its assets exceed its liabilities) then it would probably be an MVL, but if the liabilities exceed the assets (as would seem likely in this instance), then it would be a CVL. If it does prove to be the latter, then it is often the case that the value of the assets is *significantly* less than the liabilities, meaning creditors get either only a partial payment on their owed debt, or none at all. Those creditors will likely include everyone who paid a pre-order deposit or handed over the full cost directly to Heighway Pinball without receiving their game, parts suppliers owed payment, employees owed wages, distributors owed games, parts or refunds, the landlord of the factory, and of course HM Revenue & Customs (the UK’s tax authority) who will receive priority in any liquidation pay-out. Curiously, the [Pinball Brothers company](https://www.whois.com/whois/pinballbrothers.com) was formed when the new Directors took control of Heighway Pinball and it seems to have been the business through which parts and equipment was purchased. The company listing describes If that is the case, then those and other assets may already have been reclaimed and wouldn’t form part of any liquidation of Heighway Pinball. If the licences were also part of that arrangement it would allow Pinball Brothers to use those parts and equipment to manufacture *Alien* or future licensed titles for which designs already exist such as *Queen Live* or *Playboy* elsewhere and under a new brand. The future of Heighway Pinball has seemed in doubt for some time. Founded in 2012 by Andrew Heighway at his home in Merthyr Tydfill in South Wales, the company soon moved into their first factory unit and built the Bacardi Baffle Ball game which provided operating capital to help develop their first full-size pinball. That started out as *Circe’s Animal House* but was later rethemed before production to become *Full Throttle*. Sales were limited which meant, as they moved to a second factory, that the future of the company rested on the success of their second title, the much-anticipated *Alien*. Delays due to design changes, the non-availability of parts and problems with the mechanical devices meant the game was late to market and suffered reliability issues. Spares and support were both hard to come by, and the money from game sales and pre-orders began to run out. New investors were brought in – including, but not limited to, the current Directors – and the company moved again to a newer, better-equipped factory in Ebbw Vale. Staff turnover at Heighway Pinball had always been relatively high, but the move 20 miles from the original base further accelerated the flow of key team members out of the business. In June last year, Andrew himself left the business he began, handing it over to the team of investors to try to get the finances and the company’s reputation back on track. While there were promises to rebuild customers’ trust and be far more communicative, those both soon faded as the scale of the problems became apparent, with information and support both drying-up. While a trickle of Alien games was leaving the factory, ultimately the sales numbers were too low to make the business a viable operation in its current form, and the investors have apparently decided to pull the plug, with today’s announcement and the closure of the factory. The exact state of the company’s finances will become clearer at the meeting on 4th May, but it is of note that the Directors intend to apply for insolvency rather than the more common route of administration, where an Administrator is appointed to try to turn the company around or sell it as a going concern. This suggests the Directors believe they have done all they reasonably could to save the business. Whether a new company will be formed to realise Heighway Pinball’s potential and capitalise on the designs, licences and assets they had built-up for their future games, we will have to wait and see, but this does seem like the final nail in the coffin for Heighway Pinball as we know it. Pinball News will keep you informed about the outcome of that meeting and any additional details we uncover. We did contact the Directors and investors of Heighway Pinball to ask for their comments but have received no reply so far. If that changes we will update this article accordingly. We did, however receive a message from former company head, Andrew Heighway. In it he expresses his regret at the liquidation proceedings taking place, the likeliehood that pre-orderers will lose their money, and the unrealistic timeframes he promoted during his time in charge. Here’s his message: | | | --- | | I am truly sorry to hear about the turn of events announced today. In June 2017 I sold my controlling stake in Heighway Pinball Limited – including its commitments and liabilities – to a group of investors who claimed to want to put significant funds into the company, achieve mass production and deliver part-paid and fully-paid games to customers, as well as new machine sales. Throughout the five years that I ran the company, we developed and sold games up until the time of my departure. This was never a ponzi scheme, as some have suggested. A mix of technical problems, supplier quality problems and unrealistic timeframes resulted in delays that financially crippled the company. We were all committed to delivering games to all paying customers. I personally apologise for the unrealistic timeframes. There have been suggestions that I stole or diverted company funds for my own ventures. These are very serious accusations and never once have I been interviewed by the police for any alleged wrongdoings. The company’s accountants have never suggested any wrongdoings by me. It can be proven that the company owed me significant monies and not the other way round. I would therefore advise people to refrain from making any libellous or slanderous statements about me – as I will defend myself and my integrity. I very much regret that the company’s owners have closed the company without honouring its commitments to all paying customers and I wish everyone the best in pursuing their claims against the investors or via the insolvency practitioners. This situation has appalled me and I am extremely sorry for the anguish that it will inevitably cause. | | |