Salisbury restaurant closes after administrators called in at burger chain

A restaurant in Salisbury is to close after administrators were called in at the chain which owns the business.

Interpath have been appointed administrators to the Fabuously Proper Group which traded under the Byron and Mother Clucker brands.

The Byron Burger restaurant in the Wiltshire town is one of nine restaurants to close as a result of the collapse of the business.

A dozen restaurants are being transferred to new owners but the closures will mean the loss of 218 jobs.

The Byron brand has been struggling for some time and it is the second time it has gone into administration in the three years.

The company went into administration in June 2020 during the pandemic which led to the closure of 30 branches.

Founded by Tom Byng in 2007, the group had almost 70 restaurants but closed 20 of them in 2018 after going through a company voluntary arrangement.

A statement has been released by Interpath underlining the reasons behind the closures.

Interpath said the company has faced significant challenges to trading, driven by rising costs, principally food and utilities, together with a reduction in customer spending as a result of the current cost-of-living crisis.

A number of options were explored to safeguard the future of the business, no solvent offers were forthcoming, and the directors took the difficult decision to file for the appointment of administrators.

Immediately following their appointment, the joint administrators concluded a sale of the business and certain assets to Tristar Foods Limited.

A total of 12 sites will transfer to the newco as part of the transaction, safeguarding approximately 365 jobs.

Claire Winder, managing director at Interpath Advisory and joint administrator, said: “Like many other companies across the hospitality sector, Byron had seen a boost in trading following the end of the COVID lockdown measures.

“However, the sky-high inflation seen in 2022 saw costs spiral and resulted in reduced customer spend, which in turn placed significant cashflow pressure on the business.

“We are pleased to have concluded this transaction which will see the Bryon name continue to trade on high streets across the country and which, importantly, has preserved a significant number of jobs.”

The administrators will be providing support to those impacted by redundancy, including providing the information required to make claims from the Redundancy Payments Office.