The UK branch of TGI Fridays has announced that it will appoint an administrator, which puts the future of all 87 restaurants and its 4,500 employees at risk.
Hostmore is a London-listed company that has announced it will appoint administrators from Teneo and sell its restaurants to rivals. In the interim, restaurants will operate as usual.
Hostmore announced that the sale, which is expected to be completed by the end October, would not generate enough money to cover its debts. It has therefore suspended trading in its shares whose value had fallen almost to zero. The company owes £35m.
Since last week’s collapse of £180m in takeover talks between TGI Fridays and the US, the company has been trying negotiate a rescue agreement. The merger fell through after the US franchise owner claimed it lost rights to royalties, and other payments generated from the TGI name. Hostmore shares lost more than 90 percent of their value after the announcement that these talks were over.
Uncertain is whether TGI Fridays will still be acquired by a UK-based company or if the restaurants in question will all have a new brand after the acquisition. Hostmore’s board said it had “inherited very challenging circumstances”. It managed to reduce annual spending by £12m and reduce losses in unprofitable shops, while improving customer service.
The company stated: “Unfortunately all the board’s attempts to implement a long-term solution to support the financial future of the firm came against a challenging trading and macroeconomic background, and while efforts to create shareholder value through the proposed TGI acquisition were well-advanced they encountered adverse events beyond the control of the board.
TGI Fridays, a New York-based chain of restaurants founded in 1965 by a group friends with the goal of combining classic American cuisine such as hamburgers and a lively casual atmosphere.
Launched in the UK in 1995, it built a large chain that was acquired by private equity firm Electra Partners. Electra Partners will list Hostmore, the TGI owner in London in 2021.
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