All eyes over the last two days may have been concentrated on the bull sales at United Auction’s Stirling Agricultural Centre but, meanwhile, on the other side of town the management and board of the rival Caledonian Marts have been pondering the future of the business.
The situation whereby the farmer-owned business has been discovered to have around £4 million of hard or impossible to recover debt has been well publicised, but it seems that the announcement of a resolution is still at least a week away.
The first phase, which saw members and others considering a share investor prospectus, is now completed.
The second phase, which worked simultaneously with the first, sought outside interest for the whole company and its 14-acre site.
The only note of interest which has been made public came from United Auctions, but of course there may well be others.
On Tuesday, in what will be seen as a holding statement, Caledonian Marts board chairman James Cullens said: “Following the conclusion of the share-raising process the board of Caledonian Marts can announce that, whilst the amount raised has fallen short of the stated projection in the prospectus, they are delighted with the level of support shown by members and customers alike.
“As has been previously stated, the company have also been gauging interest from other parties with a view to seeking the best option for the members and customers.
“The company, with their professional help, will take the necessary time to secure the best possible outcome and hope to have a conclusion by the end of next week,” he added.