A FAMOUS fast food chain has shut seven locations after officially entering administration.
The iconic burger restaurant has begun to close multiple locations this month.
Leon, which is famous for its halloumi burgers and waffle fries, is restructuring following serious financial difficulties.
The chain built its reputation on natural, fast-casual food, opening 57 branches across the UK.
However, it has struggled to maintain profitability in recent years despite a loyal customer base.
After entering administration earlier this month, Leon has now brought in Quantuma to manage its recovery and long-term strategy.
The restructuring involves the closure of around 20 restaurants, which will see 200 jobs cut.
Leon’s co-founder repurchased the business from Asda in October 2025.
The moves comes four years after the company was sold to EG Group in a deal reportedly worth £100 million.
“If you look at the performance of Leon’s peers, you will see that everyone is facing challenges – companies are reporting significant losses due to working patterns and increasingly unsustainable taxes,” said CEO John Vincent.
He revealed taht the company was losing about £10 million a year.
“Today for every pound we receive from the customer, around 36p goes to the government in tax, and about 2p ends up in the hands of the company. It’s why most players are reporting big losses,” he explained.
He went on to say that the top priority is to close the restaurants that are performing the worst financially.
While alternative brands will take over some leases, the company will seek agreements with landlords to end their rental obligations at others.
“In the last two years, Asda had bigger fish to fry, and Leon was always a business they didn’t feel fitted their strategy,” Vincent added.
“We will rebuild Leon on its core values and I hope to be providing jobs to many more people once we have returned to profitability and can continue to grow again.”
The company has stated it will first attempt to redeploy staff to other branches that remain open, with 1,000 people currently on its pay roll.
What does it mean when a company goes into administration?
ADMINISTRATION is when all control of a company is passed to an appointed to a licensed insolvency practitioner.
It doesn’t necessarily mean the end of the business.
Instead, administrators will try to help a company find ways to repay debts or solve its cashflow problems.
Administration can last anywhere from a few weeks to up to a year or more.
But if the administration process can’t rescue the company or find a new owner, this can lead to liquidation.
Liquidation is the process of selling all assets and then dissolving the company completely.
And for those unable to be placed within Leon, a scheme has been established in partnership with Pret A Manger, allowing affected employees to apply for positions at the coffee chain.
The chain has already closed seven restaurants earlier this month, with the majority located in London.
Leon confirmed to The Sun that the following locations are now permanently shut:
- LEON – Tongham, Surrey
- LEON – Notting Hill Gate, London
- LEON ASDA – Milton Keynes
- LEON – Westfield London, Shepherd’s Bush, London
- LEON – George Street, Richmond upon Thames, London
- LEON Chancery Lane – High Holborn, central London
- LEON – Cheapside, London
