Jones snaps up fellow Dragon’s Red Letter Days

Rachel Elnaugh, founder of ailing experiences firm Red Letter Days, has seen her brainchild salvaged from administration by one of her fellow panelists on the TV enterprise show Dragons’ Den.

Peter Jones, the telecoms entrepreneur, who alongside Elnaugh offers advice to their budding peers on the BBC programme, has confirmed his on screen counterpart will no longer be working at the company. Instead, Mr Jones aided by his new business partner has bought the London-based venture for an undisclosed sum, and hopes to put the business back onto a stable financial footing.

The move represents a lifeline for 150 staff at Red Letter Days and the company's suppliers who wish to continue trading with the firm, despite claims they are hundreds-of-thousands-of-pounds out of pocket.

In a statement issued by AIC, a joint venture set up by Jones and Theo Paphitis, the ex-chairman of Millwall Football Club, the duo confirmed they are the new owners of Red Letter Days (RLD) with immediate effect. "With immediate effect, we will now focus on getting the business back to normal, following a long period of uncertainty. We have already committed to honour all Red Letter Days experiences that have been purchased directly from the Company through Visa and Mastercard.”

Despite the pledge, organisers of the company’s adventure trips, ranging from bungee jump firms to Formula One racing companies, insist they are still owed thousands, while holders of RLD vouchers fear their gifts will be rejected. Yet a statement obtained by The Times, suggests Jones and Paphitis are optimistic about retaining the network of suppliers and organisers to RLD, as a direct result of their new ownership.

“We have been hugely encouraged by the support we have received from the company’s suppliers over the past few days,” the statement read. “Even despite the fact they are unlikely to receive any monies from the administrator, a significant majority have expressed in letters, e-mails and telephone calls that they want to support the business going forward now that it is under new ownership.”

Business experts said the prompt purchase of Red Letter Days enables Jones and Paphitis a better chance at retaining its supplier network, as opposed to a longer-term process, which would have tested the loyalties of even its longest serving organisers.

Elnaugh founded Red Letter Days in 1989 after the then tax consultant struggled to find a suitable birthday present for her father., The firm, which claims to have served the teambuilding and entertainment needs of 90 per cent of FTSE 100 companies, is estimated to be worth around £20 million.