A major pub chain has announced it has fallen into administration with up to 13 of its sites at risk of closure.
High street store closures have increasingly become the norm in recent years but the hospitality industry has also fallen victim to this trend.
Antic Hospitality Group, which owns a range of pubs, bars and restaurants around East and South London, confirmed the collapse earlier this week.
Administrators were called to four sites owned by the group’s pub division on July 12.
Steve Absolom and Will Wright from Interpath Advisory were previously appointed joint administrators to Elflock Limited, Babel Silk Limited, Brocade Limited and De Gremio Limited.
As of today, it is not yet known how many workers could be affected by the potential pub closures.
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Pubs are also being hit by the recent trend of store closures
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Speaking to The Caterer, administrators from Interpath Advisory said: “This is an eclectic collection of well-known and popular pubs and bars located in prime sites across south London.
“We intend to bring these units to market in due course, representing a fantastic opportunity for investors and trade purchasers alike.”
Each of these pubs will continue to trade as normal until a potential buyer is found.
According to Interpath, the affected sites have been struggling to cope with “legacy liabilities” resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.
This marks the second time that Antic Hospitality Group has faced financial trouble.
Some 12 pubs managed by its offshoot company, Antic Limited, were placed into administration 11 years ago.
The subsidiary faced tax issues with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) but each of the sites were purchased within one month.
Based on analysis carried out by PwC found there was a net of 14 store closures a day last year with 5,000 fewer stores trading across the country.
High streets have been hit by a wave of store closures since the pandemic, on top of banks shutting down PA
Here is a full list of pubs that are potentially earmarked for closure:
- Dogstar (Brixton)
- Gremio de Brixton (Brixton)
- Balham Bowls Club (Balham)
- East Dulwich Tavern (East Dulwich)
- Tooting Tram and Social (Tooting)
- The Sun (Camberwell)
- Antelope (Tooting)
- Clapton Hart (Clapton)
- The Elephant and Castle Pub (Elephant and Castle)
- Hagen & Hyde (Balham)
- Graveney & Meadow (Tooting)
- Red Lion (Leytonstone)
- Coopers (Crystal Palace).