BEING Belfast-born, Paul McGowan likes to laugh — it’s either that or you cry.

So why did he push his firm Hilco into buying 74 department stores from the German giant Karstadt, when Germany notched up its worst-ever slump in retail sales in September? “Because we took them on in August — ha!” Likewise ask him how much he owns of Hilco UK — he runs it in partnership with the American parent, a specialist in restructuring retail businesses — and he smiles. “Technically we are a subsidiary, but I own a sizeable chunk.”

Do we know what the split is? Big grin. “I do.”

Very helpful. Don’t even ask how much money Hilco makes from its involvement in recent British retail deals, such as the break-up of Allders (Hilco took on debt and advised on store disposal), Littlewoods (it is running stores for owner ABF), and Ciro Citterio (which it bought, revived and sold on).

McGowan, 43, just sticks to quickfire responses that gently blur the issue. “Rally good,” he says, in deadpan Northern Irish, twinkle in the eye, “yer getting the hang of it now, Andrew.”

Then he laughs again. An accountant by training, brought up on the Catholic side of west Belfast, McGowan shows such a surprising affinity for banter that at times it’s hard to get a grip of what’s really going on.

That, to some degree, must be intentional. McGowan, chief executive of Hilco UK, was previously known in retail circles as an insolvency specialist. Now he stalks the walking wounded on Europe’s high streets, hoping to pounce when a retailer starts to stagger. Then Hilco can pick up bits cheap, deal with debt issues, revive and sell on — or just help someone else chew on the scraps.

That means he likes to cover his tracks, keeping people guessing where Hilco will head next. This year, he reveals, his firm controls close to €1.3 billion (£874m) of retail sales. It will have many times more than that under surveillance.

At times its role has proved controversial. Hilco was involved in the consortium that bought Lehman Brothers’ debt in Allders for 26p in the pound. It put Allders into administration, installed Kroll as administrator, which in turn appointed Hilco to advise on stock clearance and selling stores.

The debt-buying consortium is believed to have recouped 90p in the pound. Allders’ pension holders, on the other hand, subsequently discovered that the group had a £70m hole in its pension fund — nothing to do with Hilco, but sensitive nonetheless.

Others to have felt the Hilco touch here include furniture store Courts, homeware company Texstyle, and toy group Beatties. More recently Hilco has set its sights higher. Hence the rush into Germany as retail there sags. McGowan, a wine buff who is scrupulously careful about what he invests in, has a nose for a bargain.

And that’s pertinent because pockets of British retail are now looking decidedly unhealthy, too. McGowan told the press in September that at least six British high-street chains would go into administration before Christmas. Three have gone so far, he says. He refuses to name them, but Furnitureland, Allsports and Feather & Black fit the bill. Three more still to go.

But why overseas? Because tough times offer opportunity, says McGowan, and the 74 stores snapped up from Karstadt in a €500m deal, partnering property group Dawnay Day, allow Hilco to expand in a fresh direction — running retail interests with long-term potential.