Indiana-based resin and scrap broker Shaw Bros. Co. Inc. is seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing the loss of a significant customer in China and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company, owned by Li Chi Hsiao, is based in New Albany and operates a resin-making joint venture in Salem, Ind., with Tian Yuan.
Shaw Bros. filed April 1 for protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Albany, claiming liabilities of $500,000 to $1 million and assets of $50,000 or less. Creditors listed in its filing include RheTech Inc., a Whitmore Lake, Mich., producer of polyolefin alloys and compounds, which it owes $67,000.
Other plastics-related companies among its creditors include SEB Recycling Solutions LLC of Jackson, Tenn. ($15,000) and Genesis Plastic Recycling of Buffalo Grove, Ill. ($10,500).
Shaw Bros.' markets include China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Singapore and India, according to its website.
The company's lawyer told Louisville (Ky.) Business First that Shaw Bros. has struggled because it lost a major customer in China and was hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic. The company plans to liquidate but will continue in a different form, the newspaper said.
An associated firm, Green Recycling Solutions USA Inc., also is registered at the same address in New Albany but is not listed in the bankruptcy filing.
Li Chi Hsiao's spouse, Ai Huey Hsiao, who manages Shaw Bros., filed in September for Chapter 7 personal bankruptcy.