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EPPS looks forward to November event.
FRP have announced that they are pleased to have completed the sale of Carluccio’s to Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG) in a transaction that will transfer more than 800 jobs.
Phil Reynolds and Geoff Rowley from FRP’s Restructuring Advisory team were appointed as joint administrators on 30 March 2020. Following a marketing process, the Carluccio’s brand and 30 sites in the UK have been acquired by BRG which houses well-known brands including Cinnamon, Fishworks, Slim Chickens, Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner. Outside of the administration, BRG also acquired Carluccio’s Dawson Street site in Dublin, Republic of Ireland.
Unfortunately, 40 sites were not part of the transaction and will be closed, which will result in the remaining staff being made redundant, say FRP, and the joint administrators have been working closely with the Redundancy Payments Service to facilitate redundancy payments.
Phil Reynolds, joint administrator and partner, 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.”
Mark Jones, CEO at Carluccio’s, added: “For what has been a particularly challenging period for everyone at Carluccio’s and much of the rest of our industry, we’re grateful for the support and guidance provided by the team at FRP which has worked hard to secure the future of the business.”
Satnam Leihal, managing director of BRG, commented: “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.”
FRP was advised on the transaction with BRG by Lambert Smith Hampton (property), Hilco Appraisal (chattel assets and IP), Ashurst (legal) and Keystone Law (licences).
The organisers of the European Pizza and Pasta Show (EPPS, www.pizzapastashow.com) have said that they would like to confirm that the fifth edition of the show will take place on 11 and 12 November 2020 at ExCeL, London.
The show will host the European Pizza Championship, the PAPA Pizza and Pasta Chef Championships, as well as Cooking Master Classes and the European Pizza Academy. “We represent one of the industries that has endured centuries of success and years of failure. It is an industry where we work together - help each other, stand up for each other. Together we become stronger and we will no doubt overcome the current social and economic devastation,” said Stanislava Blagoeva, MD of the European Pizza and Pasta Show.
“The pizzaioli and all our chefs are tough people, they keep our traditions and build on them, creating the future of new and exciting dining culture throughout the world. The European Pizza and Pasta Show is the only event you can meet suppliers, buyers and creators in one place at the same time at the end of 2020.”
Jim Winship, director of PAPA, added: “The roots of our industry are as old as mankind, and I’m sure the resilience that has kept our sector going through history will help us emerge from 2020 all the stronger. Taking place in November, the European Pizza and Pasta Show provides a perfect opportunity to get our sector back together. To coincide with the show, we will also be celebrating some of the great work that has been done by the industry through the Coronavirus crisis at the annual Pizza, Pasta and Italian Food Industry Awards Dinner at the Royal Lancaster London on 12 November 2020. We look forward to seeing everyone at the show and the dinner to celebrate the end of this extraordinary year!”
In association with PAPA and CEVA Logistics, EPPS have launched a free online, business to business Italian food exchange called the Pizza, Pasta and Italian Food Marketplace (https://marketplace.pizzapastashow.com) which is helping the industry to restore the connections that have been disrupted by recent events, with suppliers and buyers invited to sign up to the online Italian Food Marketplace, and which is free to sign up to and use.
Marketplace members can list any products of their choice (photos, descriptions and product catalogues can be uploaded along with all the contact information and web links), with new listings and Marketplace additions promoted in a weekly newsletter which reaches over 12,000 takeaway, catering and food retail businesses across the UK.
SHORTS
Pizza Hut re-opens some sites
Pizza Hut re-opened some of its dine in sites as of 6 July, but with some changes for customers to be aware of. Namely, no self-service for now, more frequent cleaning particularly around touch points, reduced toilet facilities in some instances, the ability to order online on your phone via ordernow.com, the encouragement of social distancing and cashless payment.
Three Joes acquire The Stable
June saw Three Joes – a sourdough pizza and craft beer restaurant chain founded in 2017 with restaurants in Winchester, Fareham and Sheffield – acquire Fullers’ The Stable Pizza chain, which has restaurants in Bath, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bridport, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Falmouth, Newquay, Plymouth, Southampton and Winchester, for an undisclosed sum.
Two new launches for Purezza
Purezza, which claims to be the UK’s first vegan pizzeria, is launching its fourth branch in Bristol in August 2020, following swiftly on from the announcement of a new Hove branch, also opening in August. They are also tripling the size of their Camden branch to become what they claim will be biggest vegan restaurant in the UK, Purezza.
Surplus catering equipment surplus?
Ramco Foodservices is predicting significant growth in the availability and re-use of surplus catering equipment as operators adjust to a radically different out of home market. The catering equipment reseller says that it is seeing operators remodelling kitchens to focus on take-away services or reducing capacity to reflect market conditions, leading to a surge in enquiries for ways to manage unwanted kit.
Closure plans at Pizza Express
According to a report in the Telegraph, and elsewhere, Pizza Express – thought to employ 8,000 people in the UK – could close more than 75 of its stores as part of financial restructuring as it also holds talks with landlords. An FT report has also suggested that the high street pizza chain is to be taken over by its lenders in a debt for equity swap with Chinese owner, Hony Capital.
News coming out of Rovigo, Northern Italy in June, revealed Italian TV and newspapers heralding the ‘revenge of the flour’ with traditional mills recording a year on year doubling of production compared with February, March and April last year. The forced imprisonment of families in Italian households caused an extraordinary return to favour of home baking - flour having become massively popular as a humble and indispensable food which suddenly became a rare commodity on Italian supermarket shelves. The entire population, it seemed, were preparing their own bread, pizzas, cakes and even pasta, forcing manufacturers into overdrive with mills operating 24 hours a day to satisfy consumer demand which has increased by 30-40%, and in some cases even more. Rovigo sits in the centre of northern Italy’s milling heartland and people there refer to the job of miller as the second oldest job in the history of the world. Rovigo is also home to one of Italy’s largest mills, Grandi Molini Italiani, who are represented in the UK by Yorkshire firm, Eurostar Commodities.
Daniele Ruggin, director, Grandi Molini Italiani, said: “The flour continues to come out of our plants regularly. What happened is that it disappeared from the shops’ shelves because suddenly everyone in Italy (and beyond) put themselves into the kitchen. We have had to double production.” Philip Bull, managing director, Eurostar Commodities added: “We have had an unprecedented rise in demand for flour of all types. The lockdown has led to a sophistication in the UK market where people are requesting specific flour for the specific products that they are making.
“In particular, the high quality Italian ‘00’ flour that we import from Grandi Molini Italiani has been flying out the door. We opened an online shop where regular home bakers are now using products which we would only have supplied to high end pizzerias and chefs before. People are sending us photographs of artisan breads that they’ve made in their own homes. But the rise is across all flour and yeast products, and with gluten free baking also standing out as being very popular.” Manufacturers estimate that for domestic flour, Italian families buy 10 packs (1.5kg packs) per year, report Eurostar, but this has switched to 10 packs per month since February - an increase in consumption which has led to an increase in the production chain and welcome increased work for those employed in the sector, report Grandi Molini.
Papa John’s host virtual discovery meetings
Papa John’s has been holding a series of virtual discovery meetings designed for potential franchisees to learn more about the fast food franchise.
“At Papa John’s in the UK, we are fortunate to be able to support our communities by delivering hot food to those staying at home and to people in outdoor locations that are in line with government advice, all the while continuing to offer great value for our top quality pizza made with the freshest, finest ingredients,” says Phil Gaffer, QFP, franchise sales and business development manager Papa John’s UK.
“Our franchisee recruitment process is the same, yet we have needed to become ‘virtual’ for some elements. I usually start by speaking to potential franchisees over the phone, then they attend a discovery day where we meet in person. Normally, I’m on the road twice a week holding discovery meetings across the UK. Now we’ve launched weekly ‘virtual’ discovery meetings online.
“These one-to-one sessions are the first step in getting to know the candidate and for them to get to know Papa John’s. Many have tried Papa John’s and love the product and now these remote sessions are the chance to learn how the tried and tested franchise concept works. They are an opportunity for both parties to ask questions to see if there could be a good fit for the future. I am also planning virtual regional recruitment events too.”
In addition, for those a little further down their franchise journey, Papa John’s will be holding their first online guest visit event. Under normal circumstances, this is the next step where the candidates visit their Quality Control Centre in Milton Keynes. The remote visit will include meeting key members of the team including those from national marketing, local marketing, construction and site selection, finance, product development plus the leadership team. There will also be a virtual store visit to watch pizza being made. The guest visit will now last half a day instead of a full day and will be held each month until they are able to resume in-person visits, say the company.
“For many people, the Covid-19 situation has meant a change in work patterns. More time at home has given people the chance to reflect, take stock, think of the big picture and their future. I’ve been talking to those who are looking ahead and interested in pursuing a new direction. Papa John’s sustainable multi-unit business model is an attractive proposition,” adds Phil Gaffer.
“For those interested in running a multi-unit Papa John’s franchise, we have opportunities throughout the UK. We are particularly looking for franchisees to develop businesses in the North West, North East, Nottinghamshire and the South West. Help is provided with location selection and full turn-key opening of stores. As a franchise, the company supplies all the assistance needed to get your successful Papa John’s up and running.” Riso Gallo has announced the results of its “Cultivate the Future” project for 2020, with innovative measures on social and environmental responsibility and highlighting their commitment to the needs of the community and farmers that they work with, such as reducing packaging materials, energy consumption, waste produced and CO2 emissions, say the company. As a result, Riso Gallo claims that it is the first international brand in the sector to have undertaken the production of rice from sustainable agriculture, making their premium best-selling risotto rices - Gallo Risotto Tradition, Arborio, Carnaroli and Carnaroli Rustico - fully sustainable. This means that almost 50% of Riso Gallo business in Europe (outside Italy) now comes from sustainable agriculture - the first step of a progressive commitment towards a fully sustainable approach to its’ rice business, say the company, their focus being on 0km sourcing, top quality raw materials sustainable to the environment, people and local community. All the premium rice varieties are produced only from sustainable agriculture, certified by the international “Farm Sustainability Assessment” and are milled on traditional stones which, thanks to a gentle abrasion of the grain, say Riso Gallo, retains part of its coating, giving it a slightly amber colour, and preserving its organoleptic and nutritional qualities.
During Covid-19, Papa John’s Phil Gaffer has been briefing potential franchisees virtually.
