Can’t find any reference to SMD Publishing down at Companies House. Well, that’s not true actually: there’s an S.M.D. Publishing listed as having been dissolved in October 1999. No companies of similar current or proposed names are listed.
Assuming that’s the right name, for SMD not to be listed, it would have to be a sole trader or something similar (hence the lack of the Ltd monicker at the end of its name). But no one would buy Hotdog or Front without some kind of safety net, would they, unless the plan is to sell them on to a Ltd company at a later date?
It’s all very mysterious.
UPDATE: One of the names behind SMD may be Simon Robinson, co-founder of Remnant, although that’s just a rumour at this stage.
ADDITIONAL UPDATE: The Media Guardian reports that DVD World went to SMD as well.
It will be interesting to learn in the resulting meeting of creditors a little more about a sales process that has confused everybody along the way – staff, creditors and bidders. Exactly how many bidders were there for these brands? What were the final sale values? Were payments made to certain creditors before the sales completed? How were these payments managed? Were any transfer of undertakings sought? Why were some bidders told that only a ‘complete portfolio’ sale would be considered and then the brands sold off in groups? Answers on a postcard!