The key point
"We were told by the Phones4u management team that they had little commercial flexibility due to their debt repayment obligations"
A very common problem for any company that finds itself taken under the wing of Private Equity - they're typically loaded up with as much debt as they can possibly finance when running flat out, so they have nowhere to go if any (when) any hiccup occurs, and hence they're doomed.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
