Connell contract escapes receiver

By Deborah Hill Cone

Friday 15th March 2002

Tim Connell quarantined IT Media's only profitable publishing contract in his own company while acting as a director of IT owner Wilson Neil and announcing the contract as an exciting development for IT Media.

The move means creditors of IT Media will be unable to get their hands on the asset, the contract to publish Foodtown supermarket's inhouse magazine.

IT Media founder Tim Connell yesterday denied the contract had anything to do with IT Media, as did Foodtown marketing manager Geraldine Oldham.

That is despite an August 10 announcement in the IT Media-owned publication New Zealand Business Times crowing that IT Media had won the contract to publish the Foodtown magazine.

At the time Mr Connell was quoted as saying the Foodtown contract "is an exciting development for the company."

But yesterday morning he told The National Business Review the Foodtown contract had never had anything to do with IT Media. When asked later about the NZBT story, he said parts of it were wrong.

IT Media had provided services to the Foodtown magazine, such as accounting functions and general publishing elements, but did not own it, Mr Connell said.

The contract to publish the magazine was with Gourmet Food Publishing, a company Mr Connell jointly owns with Hamilton businessman Simon Perry. The company now operates out of offices in Anzac Ave, Auckland, Companies Office records show.

IT Media receiver Grant Graham, of Ferrier Hodgson, said he had taken legal advice and was satisfied the magazine was not part of IT Media's assets.

Mr Connell said he was not certain whether he had signed the deal with Foodtown while he was still managing director of IT Media's parent company Wilson Neill.

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