The executives at Brisbane based custom installer Captivant, the owners of ExperienceONE who the Australian Tax Office moved to wind up recently, because of debts over $500,000 are believed to have entered discussions with the ATO, in an effort to avoid yet another liquidation of a business linked to the trio.

Three of the four shareholders of the Company as of June of this year were Matt Manalis, the Chairman of CEDIA’s Certification Commission, Regan Webb who was recently flow to the USA by CEDIA to get an award and Brendan Cousemacker who we believe has recently departed the business.

 

Several industry suppliers at last week’s StereoNet Audio show told ChannelNews that they have been told that Webb and Manalis are trying to raise the capital to avoid another winding up of a business they are involved in.

Matt Manalis

The trio have a track record of being involved in custom install and CEDIA linked businesses that have been placed into liquidation with questions raised in the past about their business practises.

Ruslan Webb

Manalis and Cousemacker were directors and shareholders, and Webb a shareholder, of the company BMR Group. That company was placed into voluntary liquidation in 2022 owing $1,653,864 to creditors with $1,403,592 of that debt owed to the ATO.

In addition, Manalis, Cousemacker and Webb were all directors (Webb only for a matter of months) and shareholders of the company Digital Residence Pty Ltd. That company was wound up by the ATO in 2018 over a tax debt, with over $800,000 owed to creditors at the time of liquidation.

Manalis the CEO of Captivant and ExperienceONE has not responded to our requests for comment.