A POPULAR US restaurant chain has sold 51 UK branches as part of a major shake-up.
The family favourite eatery has been operating across Britain for decades, with the first location opening in 1986.
Now, the restaurant’s entire UK portfolio has been sold, with the 51 branches entering new ownership.
Sugarloaf, the global manager of the TGI Fridays brand acquired TGI Fridays UK just a year after a rescue deal for the brand.
After a 12-month ownership by Cavelton UK and Breal Capital, holding company Liberty Bar and Restaurant Group will transfer ownership to Sugarloaf TGIF Management LLC.
Rescue deal
In October 2024, TGI Fridays UK was purchased as part of a rescue deal in which 51 restaurants were saved, but 35 closed.
This followed a challenging period of trading for the brand in the UK, and the abandonment of reverse takeover bid of its US parent company.
The bid was initially made as part of a plan to transition to the brand to an asset-light franchise model.
In July, TGI Fridays announced that it was entering a “new era” with a new menu launched across its estate to coincide with its 60th anniversary and US Independence Day.
It was described as “a pivotal moment in TGI Fridays’ evolution under a leaner, more agile business model.”
New era
“After a prolonged period of due diligence we are pleased to announce the sale of TGI Friday’s UK to Sugarloaf, the manager and custodian of the worldwide brand,” a spokesperson for Breal Capital and Calveton UK said.
“During 12 months of our tenure, we have stabilised the team and supply chains, as well as completing the first phase of repositioning the brand through a national relaunch on July 4th this year.”
According to the rep, this move saw “improvements in both revenues and covers growth versus run rate”.
“We hand the reins over with positive like-for-like sales growth and festive trading currently a healthy 25% up on bookings versus this time last year,” the spokesperson continued.
“We would like to thank the UK management team and staff for their hard work and efforts over the last month.”
The sale of the UK business comes during a tough period for the hospitality industry.
Many businesses are grappling with a stagnating economy and the impact of tax rises in last year’s budget.
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