Vibe founder: Administration was the only route

Exclusive: By Ged Henderson

Vibe Tickets founder Luke Massie has spoken for the first time since the tech business was placed in administration and then bought back by him.

He told Lancashire Business View that administration was “the only route forward” for the Preston-based ticket marketplace and he “wasn’t willing to give up on it”.

Luke has formed a new holding company called Vibe Group Holdings (VGHL) and says there have been no redundancies as a result of the restructuring exercise.

He added: “Due to difficult circumstances administration was the only route forward for the business.”

He said that his first offer to the administrators was rejected because another offer was on the table.

And he added: “I am looking for more capital moving forward. We are in talks to secure £2m-£3m to take the business forward.”

In a statement to the Stock Exchange Antony Laiker, executive director of Vela, which invested £400,000 in Vibe last October, said: “We have supported Luke Massie and Vibe Tickets since 2016.

“Vibe has made strong headway reaching over 84,000 users and has generated over £7m of ticket volume, all with minimal marketing spend. Vibe Tickets is doing what it set out to do - disrupting the big players.