Friday May 22, 2020

Deal sees transfer of 30 UK restaurant sites and more than 800 employees

We are pleased to have completed the sale of Carluccio’s to Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG) in a transaction that will transfer more than 800 jobs.

Phil Reynolds and Geoff Rowley from our Restructuring Advisory team were appointed as Joint Administrators on 30 March 2020. Following a marketing process, the Carluccio’s brand and 30 sites in the UK have been acquired by BRG which houses well-known brands including Cinnamon, Fishworks, Slim Chickens, Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner. Outside of the administration, BRG also acquired Carluccio’s Dawson Street site in Dublin, Republic of Ireland.

Unfortunately, 40 sites were not part of the transaction and will be closed, which will result in the remaining staff being made redundant. The Joint Administrators are working closely with the Redundancy Payments Service to facilitate redundancy payments.

Phil Reynolds, Joint Administrator and Partner, said: “The COVID-19 lockdown has put incredible pressure on businesses across the leisure sector, so it has been important to work as quickly and as decisively as possible in an extremely challenging business environment to secure a sale, which ensures the future of the Carluccio’s brand in the UK casual dining scene, retains a significant network of sites across the country and, critically, transfers a considerable number of jobs. We wish the team all the best as part of the Boparan Restaurant Group.”

Mark Jones, CEO at Carluccio’s, said: “For what has been a particularly challenging period for everyone at Carluccio’s and much of the rest of our industry, we’re grateful for the support and guidance provided by the team at FRP which has worked hard to secure the future of the business.”

Satnam Leihal, Managing Director of BRG, commented: “We welcome Carluccio’s colleagues to BRG. This acquisition is in line with our strategy to grow our restaurant group with quality brands. Whilst it is an extremely challenging time for the sector, we believe quality hospitality businesses will recover in the long term as people return to eating out.”

FRP was advised on the transaction with BRG by Lambert Smith Hampton (property), Hilco Appraisal (chattel assets and IP), Ashurst (legal) and Keystone Law (licences).