A FURNITURE business set up by Durham Pine founder John Marshall is in liquidation.

Zing Limited, which had a head office in Gateshead, owes nearly £85,000 to creditors.

Linda Farish and Anthony Josephs, of accountants and business advisors RMT, were appointed joint liquidators in December.

Mr Marshall made his name in the furniture business after setting up Durham Pine in 1984. The business grew to a £60m turnover and had 80 stores across the UK.

In 2003, the company rebranded as DP Furniture Express but, at the same time, was hit by a declining retail market and a fall in consumer spending.

The business went into administration in October 2005, but was bought out by senior managers and relaunched as Furniture Express. Last year, Furniture Express, which had a head office in Sunderland, also collapsed.

The Northern Echo, which has been unable to contact Mr Marshall, understands that Zing Limited was used as the trading name for two stores formerly part of the Durham Pine group.

In a letter to creditors, RMT said Zing's collapse was caused by difficult trading conditions.