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Hardeep Singh’s liquor empire has gone bust, store sales have fallen through and the debt his company owes is a million dollars more than first thought. Jake Kenny reports.
The trail of debt left by a collapsed liquor empire is $1 million more than first thought, while its controversial head has gone to ground after scrutinised store sales he organised fell through.
Hardeep Singh is the man behind Big Daddy’s - a chain of booze shops mostly in Christchurch that are no longer, after its overarching company was liquidated over unpaid lease obligations.
It has been a challenging few months for the controversial businessman, who resides in a $4m mansion on the outskirts of the city with his wife Gauravjot Kaur.
Earlier this year the pair had a Labour Inspectorate complaint made against one of their companies over the alleged underpayment of staff. The inspectorate has since confirmed the complaint will not be investigated further due to a lack of evidence, but would be kept on record.
It is the sixth known Labour Inspectorate complaint made against the couple’s companies.
Meanwhile, the debt left by Big Daddy’s Ltd’s collapse is now estimated at more than $1.8m - a million dollars more than first thought when liquidator Brenton Hunt issued his first report late last year.
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The former Big Daddy’s flagship store on Blenheim Rd is tied to another company run by Singh and has survived. It has recently rebranded to a Black Bull Liquor store.
In his latest report, Hunt said three Big Daddy’s store sales made shortly prior to the liquidation - which the liquidator previously said he was scrutinising - did not go ahead for “various issues”.
The stores are understood to be in Rangiora, Sydenham and Hillmorton.
The liquidation had recouped and sold $24,000 worth of equipment.
Singh “refuted” that the equipment belonged to the company, Hunt said.
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Investigations into the director’s actions were continuing, particularly to determine if there had been breaches of the Companies Act, the report noted.
The bulk of the debt is owed to unsecured creditors, who are not expected to be paid.
Staff of the liquor stores are owed $35,000.
Stuff understands that the latest Labour Inspectorate complaint made earlier this year relates to the running of a Christchurch restaurant, and the alleged underpayment of two chefs on work visas from India.
It was made against Karman Enterprises Ltd, of which Singh’s wife is sole director. He was removed from directorship late last year. The couple are both shareholders.
This week, Jeanie Borsboom, Labour Inspectorate manager, said the complaint did not meet the threshold for an investigation.
“The information was provided anonymously and was assessed as unlikely to result in sufficient evidence to support formal investigative action,” Borsboom said.
“[It] has been retained for future reference. Should further similar complaints be received it will be reassessed and may lead to a future compliance check.”
Borsboom previously confirmed that three complaints relating to Karman Enterprises Ltd were received in 2013, 2015 and 2019. Big Daddy’s Ltd faced complaints in 2015 and 2018.
The investigations did not go further because complainants did not want to make statements, Borsboom said.
The couple previously failed to pay restaurant staff wages and holiday pay over several years, totalling $50,000, according to three Employment Relations Authority (ERA) case decisions.
Meanwhile, Singh and his wife live in a mansion inside a gated community on the outskirts of Christchurch, which has at least seven bedrooms, a theatre, wine cellar, games room and sauna.
Social media posts seen by Stuff show the couple enjoying trips overseas and hosting lavish parties at their mansion.
The couple’s property portfolio previously included two retirement homes with a combined rateable value of more than $6m. They have since sold Homesteadcare Ilam and Bloomfield Court in Rangiora.
Stuff previously reported that Bhavi Singh bought a liquor store from Singh that never opened because it could not get a liquor licence.
Late last year, Singh and Kaur staved off bankruptcy action by the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) over hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid tax.
The court matter settled after IRD was granted security over two liquor stores.
Stuff understands the couple has been threatened with more bankruptcy action over more allegedly unpaid debts.
Big Daddy’s Ltd was liquidated by the High Court on an application by the Bush Inn shopping centre, after a lease was defaulted on that the company was named over.
Another company - Super Bazaar Ltd - remains in Singh’s control and is overdue in its obligations to file an annual return with the tax department.
It trades as a supermarket, according to the companies’ register.
Singh and his wife did not respond to texts and calls.