JOB fears were sparked today as the parent firm of one of Darwen's biggest employers was hit by a multi million dollar financial crisis.

The American-based Imperial Home Decor group - the biggest wallpaper maker in the world - has filed for court protection from its creditors under United States bankruptcy law and it's president has quit.

Its Darwen-based UK operation, which employs around 800 people in the town at the site still known locally as Crown Wallcoverings, is not included in the filing for financial protection but the news of its parent company's troubles will be worrying for local workers.

But managing director of the UK operation, Bob Watson, today stressed it was "business as usual."

He said sales had fallen rapidly between early 1998 and the spring of 1999 mainly because of lower sales to Russia and Eastern Europe but the situation had now stabilised. "Market share has increased in each of the last eight months. We now enjoy the best selling UK wallpaper designs and I look forward to 2000 with increasing confidence."

The US firm said it needed protection to enable it to carry out a financial shake-up within the group and stressed that it was still a viable company.

"Our company is profitable on an operating basis but company debt levels are too high and simply cannot be sustained," said Scott Levin, the US group's acting head following the resignation of president James Toohey.

Imperial Home Decor was created in 1998 by the merger of Darwen-based Borden Decorative Products - the firm behind the Crown Wallcoverings and Shand Kydd brands - and American giant Imperial Wallcoverings.

Since then the firm has suffered difficult times with more than 120 job losses at the Darwen site blamed on the strong pound affecting export sales.

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