TGI Fridays UK owner files for administration

Hostmore has appointed administrators and delisted its ordinary shares after struggling to find a “lasting solution” to save the business.

It comes after the group, which runs the UK franchise for TGI Fridays, saw plans to buy its US parent company fall through earlier this month.

Hostmore said in April it had agreed to buy the casual dining brand for £177m but the deal broke down after the American company lost control of TGIF Funding, which controls the royalties from its lucrative franchise agreements and intellectual property.

The surprise announcement saw Hostmore’s share price plunge more than 90% from the start of the month to open at 0.2 pence.

It marks a stark drop from when the company was spun out of private equity trust Electra in November 2021 and started trading at 147 pence a share.

A London Stock Exchange update published this morning (18 September) said its ordinary shares had been suspended from the Financial Conduct Authority’s Official List “at the request of the company”.

A general business update shared minutes after revealed the board of Hostmore had agreed to file for administration, which had led to the delisting of its shares.

Daniel Smith and Julian Heathcote of Teneo Financial Advisory Limited have been appointed joint administrators of the Company.

The company’s ordinary shares are expected to be cancelled and wound up “in due course”.

A statement issued on behalf of Matthew Bibby, chief financial officer of Hostmore, said: “Unfortunately, all of the Board’s efforts to implement a lasting solution to support the long-term financial future of the business came against a highly challenging trading and macroeconomic backdrop, and efforts to create value for shareholders through the proposed acquisition of TGI Fridays, while well-advanced, encountered adverse events outside of the Board’s control.”

Hostmore added the sale process for its portfolio of 87 restaurants is still ongoing.

Its trading subsidiary, Thursdays (UK) Limited, continues to operate as normal and all existing stores remain open.

The UK’s first TGI Fridays opened in Birmingham’s Hagley Road in 1986.

Image: Shutterstock/Billy F Blume Jr