Alchemy – Is Anglian In Dire Straits?

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Alchemy, which effectively owns Anglian Home Improvements, which in turn owns Everest 2020 and Safestyle, is rumoured to be looking for a buyer – or possibly simply to asset strip or even liquidate.

If the company folds, Alchemy gets first dibs on any or all money, as distressed debt investors are protected above other creditors.

Anglian Home Improvements actually trades as the ASHI Group Ltd but is still better known as Anglian Windows. It, alongside Everest Double Glazing (which went into administration and re-emerged as Everest 2020) and Safestyle were always known as the big three double glazing firms.

When Everest 2020 went bust in April 2024, it was snapped up by the ASHI Group with some parts sold on such as Evolution Home Improvement.

Interpath Advisory was appointed administrator to HPAS Limited, trading as Safestyle UK, Style Group Holdings Limited and Style Group UK Limited on 30 October 2023. An order book, as well as certain other assets, were sold to Anglian Home Improvements aka ASHI Group Ltd.

Inevitably there were job losses at both Everest and at Safestyle. Anglian has attempted to fulfil orders and attend to remedials, with the latter proving difficult and costly and often not done satisfactorily as far as homeowners are concerned.

Each of the three used contractors with many losing out at each stage and with the prospect of now having to tackle a market with a surfeit of installers due to market conditions. At least their involvement had allowed some to increase the scope of the home improvement services they offered.

Alchemy

Alchemy, a group of investment partners, has held the majority of shares in Anglian Home Improvements for over fifteen years and has been involved as an investor since 2001. The partners specialise in distress investments on behalf of their clients.

The disposal of Anglian could take up to 12 months but the partners will be aware that both Everest and Safestyle went into administration at a time when the window and home improvement market was not in good health – and is struggling to recover. Insolvencies are rising and consolidation is occurring at the PVC-U supplier end and even in the aluminium window and curtain walling supplier sector – a barometer there may be trouble ahead for those lower down the supply chain.

Sky News has reported that Alchemy will appoint investment bankers to act on its behalf with an ‘auction’ muted as a means of disposal.

Distressed investing at its simplest involves finding companies that are in financial trouble, investing to make them viable and the selling them on.

Financiers look for companies where paying off debt is putting too much pressure on the business and can’t be re-financed by other means. This means they can take a greater number of shares than might normally be on offer (a bit like a high-interest credit card if not a pay-day loan). But they do want good products/services and a proven business model that can be turned around. Despite the ‘protection’ of being first to get paid if the company fails, they are still in it to ultimately sell on a now successful business – or to sell on its successful constituents.

Matt Wilson, a portfolio manager at Oaktree Capital Management, says: “When an otherwise successful company runs into problems with debt, a distressed debt investor can identify an opportunity and buy a portion of that debt with the goal of gaining a controlling position, which means they can restructure the company to their best interests.”

Picture: Anglian and Alchemy – it all now comes down to money.

Article written by Cathryn Ellis
13th August 2025

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