After a failed rescue by private equity of the struggling British restaurant group, TGI Fridays has lost more than 1,000 jobs and closed 35 branches.
D&D London, the owners of top City restaurants such as Coq D’Argent, Le Pont De La Tour and Coq D’Argent, is buying 51 TGI Fridays restaurants from administration, saving approximately 2,400 jobs.
However, the deal was overshadowed by the treatment of the workers who were not included in rescue. It is claimed that they learned of their fate through a video from the head office, with only an hour’s warning. Other workers were locked out, and informed via WhatsApp messages.
Unite, a union, claims that some employees were not informed whether they will be paid in full and reimbursed for accrued holidays pay or tips. This was “truly appalling behavior”, said X.
TGI Fridays said initially that discussions with landlords could save more branches, but administrators Teneo later confirmed 35 restaurants were closed “immediately”, with 1012 redundancies.
Hostmore owners of UK company , filed for bankruptcy in the last month. The operating business gave notice that it intended to appoint an administrator.
Julie McEwan said, “We are deeply saddened by the departure of our colleagues from TGI Fridays UK and we thank them for all their loyalty and contributions during their time here.” We will do everything we can to keep our team together and help those who are affected.
TGI Fridays has its origins in a New York Restaurant that opened in 1965 under the slogan “In here it’s always Friday”. At one time, the franchise grew to 600 restaurants in total around the world. Its formula included a large number of cocktails, casual dining options of wings, ribs and burgers, and a branding consisting of red and yellow stripes. The first TGI restaurant in Britain opened at Covent Garden in central London in 1985.
In recent years, the chain has been struggling in the UK. It is being overtaken by newer formats and is facing debts. Hostmore described it as “a very difficult set of circumstances”.
Daniel Smith, Teneo’s senior managing director, stated that the casual dining industry had been affected by pressures placed on discretionary expenditure. The acquisition will “preserve a significant portion of jobs, and hopefully provide the business the stability and support needed to recover and grow”.
Breal Group, a private equity firm, and Calveton are now the new owners of all the restaurants that survived. They own D&D restaurants, Byron Burgers, and Vinoteca Wine Bars.
Breal and Calveton’s spokesman said: “We are thrilled to be working with an enthusiastic and dedicated management team in order to modernise the company and capitalize on the heritage and legacy of this iconic brand.”
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