Casual Dining & Contract Catering Sector

Catering Firm Compass Forecasts 19% Organic Sales Fall and £100m Hit

Hospitality Ireland– 02.10.2020

Catering firm Compass Group has said that it cannot predict how quickly its revenue will recover from the coronavirus pandemic as it forecast a 19% organic sales fall and a £100 million hit on its biggest businesses. Shares in Compass, the cafeterias and catering operations of which serve workers at Google, Shell and HSBC as well as schools, old age homes and the armed forces, have slumped 40% this year and were down 4.5% after the FTSE 100 firm reported a 36% preliminary fall in fourth-quarter revenue.

GBK restaurant chain bought in rescue deal

Irish Examiner – 14.10.2020

International restaurant chain Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK) — which runs over 60 outlets in the UK and five in Ireland — has been acquired from its South African owner in a so-called pre-pack rescue deal. The UK-based Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG) has taken over GBK, saying the deal will save 35 restaurants and 669 jobs. However, more than 360 people will be made redundant with 26 outlets due to close. South Africa’s Famous Brands said GBK had entered administration after becoming the latest victim of brutal trading conditions in the face of Covid-19.