Carluccio’s restaurant chain is bought out in rescue deal

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Carluccio’s restaurant chain is bought out in rescue deal that will save 30 branches but cost over 1,000 jobs

  • Chain sold to Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner owner Boparan Restaurant Group 
  • Deal saved around 800 jobs with a further 1,019 employees made redundant  
  • Italian-style brand was founded by late chef Antonio Carluccio in 1999

By Faith Ridler For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

Carluccio’s restaurant chain has been bought out in a rescue deal which will save 30 of its branches but costs over 1,000 jobs, administrators have announced.     

Italian-style brand was sold to Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner owner Boparan Restaurant Group, in a deal which has saved 30 restaurants and around 800 jobs.   

However, administrators FRP Advisory said the move has also resulted in the redundancy of 1,019 Carluccio’s employees after it was unable to secure the future of the chain’s other 40 restaurants.

Saved: The ailing restaurant chain was founded by late chef Antonio Carluccio

Phil Reynolds, joint administrator and partner at FRP, said: ‘The Covid-19 lockdown has put incredible pressure on businesses across the leisure sector, so it has been important to work as quickly and as decisively as possible in an extremely challenging business environment to secure a sale which ensures the future of the Carluccio’s brand in the UK casual dining scene retains a significant network of sites across the country and, critically, transfers a considerable number of jobs.

‘We wish the team all the best as part of the Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG).’

Satnam Leihal, managing director of BRG, said: ‘We welcome Carluccio’s colleagues to BRG. This acquisition is in line with our strategy to grow our restaurant group with quality brands.

‘Whilst it is an extremely challenging time for the sector, we believe quality hospitality businesses will recover in the long term as people return to eating out.’   

The deal has ensured, at least over the short term, the survival of the 21-year-old Carluccio’s brand, which was founded by late chef Antonio Carluccio. 

Before it slipped into administration at the end of March, Carluccio’s had been owned by Dubai-based retail firm Landmark Group. 

Boparan is owned by tycoon Ranjit Boparan, who earned the nickname ‘chicken king’ after founding poultry supplier 2 Sisters Food Group in 1993. 

He bought Giraffe from Tesco in 2016, and months later grabbed Ed’s Diner out of administration. 

But he was forced to close a third of the locations last year amid a crisis in the casual dining sector.