Shopping channel TVSN is facing legal demands from furious suppliers who claim it is selling goods it hasn’t paid them for in a closing-down fire sale after investors snubbed a $40 million pitch to rescue the company.
Guy Parsons, a supplier to TVSN who runs the business My Hair Doctor online, said he was preparing to serve TVSN with a formal creditor’s demand, claiming he is owed $140,000 for shipments of hair dryers and haircare products delivered to the network’s Sydney headquarters.
In the weeks before TVSN launched its closing-down sale, about 170 wealthy and high-profile Australian investors were approached by the son of TVSN director Bernie Brookes – a former chief executive at Myer – with a last-ditch rescue bid, an email and document obtained by this masthead show.
The August 24 email from Tim Brookes (Bernie’s son), a partner at advisory firm Unessa, contained a “strictly confidential” 28-page slide deck titled “Project Signal” that said TVSN had been restructured and was seeking investors prepared to part with between $32 million and $40 million to “restore liquidity.”
“Following a substantial restructuring, the business is well positioned and is now seeking the right ownership and capital partner for its next stage of growth,” it said.
Andrew Forrest’s Tattarang and Minderoo; the Lowy, Smorgon and Schwartz family offices; private equity firms CPE Capital and Propel Investments; and investment bankers such as former Macquarie CEO Nicholas Moore and senior executive Nicole Sorbara, were included on the email.
“This email is being sent to a select group of parties under blind carbon copy (BCC) ahead of a broader market process,” wrote Tim Brookes, who had mistakenly copied in (CC’d) all recipients. Tim Brookes did not respond to a request for comment.
When approached by this masthead, Bernie Brookes confirmed that Direct Group, the network’s owner, is “not at this stage” considering any offers for TVSN.
Parsons said he flew to Sydney last week from London because he was due to appear on a broadcast segment at TVSN that was cancelled after the network pivoted to “presenter only” segments.
He said he was denied entry to TVSN’s headquarters in Sydney’s Frenchs Forest when he visited to collect his personal belongings. He watched the show air from outside the building as presenters advertised his products, and said he was informed by security that his belongings were ready to collect after the segment concluded.
“They’re literally trying to rake in as much money as they can,” Parsons said. “They knew the position they were in. They’ve been taking in stock knowing they’re indebted.”
Suppliers claim they have not heard from TVSN since Tuesday, when the network sent an email informing them of the closing-down sale, three days after the company alerted shoppers.
“They don’t want any suppliers to go near the place. They know what the score is,” said Parsons. “No one’s answering emails or phone calls.
“We’ve called for everybody to boycott and shut TVSN down. We’re calling it the Totally Vile Shambles Network.”
Parsons said he was separately taking legal action against transport firm Mainfreight after it erroneously released a shipment of hair dryers to TVSN despite confirming daily to him that they would not be released. Mainfreight was contacted for comment.
TVSN stands for Television Shopping Network. Its presenters and product suppliers showcase thousands of everyday items such as frying pans, homewares and fashion accessories live on air. The network has changed hands multiple times since it was founded more than three decades ago, and is now owned by Direct Group, which also operates Reader’s Digest Australia and direct-to-consumer retailer Innovations.
Brookes’ pitch to high-profile investors asked for a single “control investor” that could inject millions, acquire the firm’s debt and restore liquidity to the business.
The core of TVSN’s problems stem from stock flow availability, which hit a wall after trade credit insurers withdrew their cover of Direct Group due to “historic payment behaviour”. “No assurance is given that insurance or supplier terms will be restored,” the rescue pitch states.
The whole Direct Group business relies on just 71,000 active customers who make a combined 756,000 orders a year. Net sales have plummeted 33.4 per cent in two years, from $219.4 million in fiscal 2024 to $196.8 million the following year and $146.2 million in fiscal 2026. All figures provided in the document were unaudited.
The sale process is “being run in a stressed capital structure” with “Safe Harbour discipline maintained”, the document stated. Safe Harbour acts as a temporary legal shield to protect company directors from personal liability for insolvent trading, as long as directors seek advice from a restructuring expert and actively develop and pursue a course of action.
Final bids for the business were due by September 14. TVSN’s closing-down sale launched three weeks later, after which Safe Harbour protections may not apply and company directors may be liable for continued trading or failure to pay suppliers.
Bernie Brookes remains listed as a managing partner of Unessa on its website. When asked if engaging the firm and his son raised potential conflict of interest, Brookes said he stood aside from Unessa when the TVSN sale process began. “The director, bankers, advisers and board ensured a high degree of separation,” he said in an email.
Dozens of suppliers have taken to social media with price match promises and discounts in posts urging TVSN customers to buy from them directly.
One supplier, who declined to be named due to the commercial sensitivities, said dozens of other suppliers had expressed interest in forming a potential class action against TVSN.
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Jessica Yun is a business reporter covering retail and food for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X or email.From our partners
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