D&D owners could finalise rescue bid for TGI Fridays this weekend: The owners of D&D London could finalise rescue bid for TGI Fridays this weekend, salvaging more than 2,000 jobs. Sky News has reported that Breal Capital and Calveton, which acquired D&D London last year, could agree a deal to acquire the majority of TGI Fridays as early as Monday. An announcement is likely to be made once the transaction is completed. Sources said this weekend that a deal was expected to include between 50 and 55 of the chain’s 87 sites and at least 2,000 of its more than 3,000-strong workforce. Final details were still being ironed out between the buyers and the administrators to the business, they added. Hostmore, the parent company, said last month that it was filing for administration but that this would have no impact on Thursdays, the trading subsidiary which owns the TGI Fridays UK franchise. However, the operating business itself subsequently filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators, with Hostmore’s board blaming “a very challenging set of circumstances” for its collapse. The impending deal is understood to include the chain’s existing leases and the right to use the TGI Fridays brand in the UK. The collapse of TGI Fridays’ UK parent came less than six months after it struck a deal to reverse the US restaurant business of the same name into London-listed Hostmore, in a deal has since been abandoned. Breal and Teneo declined to comment, while Calveton could not be reached. Propel reported late last month that D&D’s owners were in advanced talks to buy the UK operations of TGI Fridays, a week after Hostmore collapsed into administration. Hostmore features in the Premium Club Turnover & Profits Blue Book, which features 978 companies. Hostmore’s turnover of £190,700,000 for the year ending 31 December 2023 is the 61st highest in the database. The Blue Book ranks companies by turnover, profit and profit conversion, listing directors’ earnings for the past five years. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription.

Malhotra Group returns to profit, leasing out some leisure division venues proving to be a ‘highly effective strategy’: North east pub, restaurant and hotel operator Malhotra Group returned to profit in the year to 31 March 2024 and said leasing out some of its leisure division venues is proving to be a “highly effective strategy”. The company turned a pre-tax loss of £422,756 in 2023 into a profit of £5,769,994. Revenue in the leisure division was up from £9.9m in 2023 to £10.1m, while its gross profit increased from £7.3m to £7.6m, but Ebitda was down from £2.8m to £2.3m due to increased wages and utility costs. The family-run company, which also operates in the property and care home sectors, saw overall turnover grow from £47,081,115 in 2023 to £57,518,177, while group Ebitda was up from £13.5m in 2023 to £13.6m. No government grants were received compared to £1,704,749 in 2023. No dividends were paid (2023: nil). “During the year, a soft play area was installed at the Three Mile Inn, capitalising on some unused space and enhancing our family pizza offering,” director Jagmohan Malhotra said. “Additionally, planning permission was obtained on the Sandpiper pub, Whitley Bay, with regard to the creation of ground floor retail units and 14 apartments. Following on from 2023, which saw more tempered demand with inflation and interest rates affecting customers' disposable income, 2024 has seen trading similarly affected, and demand has dropped following price increases introduced by the business to cover increasing wages, energy and raw materials. This has particularly impacted our bars and restaurants, although the introduction of the soft play at the Three Mile Inn boosted performance over prior year. The hotels continued to trade well, although performing slightly below expectations and prior year. The contract to let the New Northumbria Hotel to the Home Office ceased in January 2024. In some instances, we have moved away from being the sole operator of all trading activities at a leisure venue, and instead have entered into ‘partner’ arrangement with third parties who lease and operate part of our facilities. We have found this to be a highly effective strategy, meaning our income stream is now a hybrid of (mainly) trading income but also includes an element of rental income. Since the end of the financial year, trading continues to be moderated across the majority of sites. We continue to invest in our portfolio, with venue refreshes undertaken post year end at Leila Lily's and the Runhead.”