Laurel Pub Company creditors face £130m loss

The creditors of Laurel Pub Company face a potential loss of £130m after the group was put into administration in March, according to a report today.

The Daily Telegraph says administrator Kroll has put the amount owed to Laurel’s unsecured creditors- including food suppliers, carpet makers and magazine publishers – at £133m.

The paper cites sources close to Bay Restaurant Group and Town and City Pub Company – the two businesses that were formed after Laurel went into administration to buy up some of its assets – that claim the majority of creditors have been repaid.

Robert Tchenguiz, who owned Laurel through his investment vehicle R20, placed the company into administration earlier this year before buying 293 of its 383 pubs and restaurants back.

Bay Restaurants comprises 84 Slug & Lettuce, 24 Ha Ha bar & grill sites and 24 pipeline sites, as well as the 85 La Tasca restaurants previously under Laurel control.

Town & City Pubs has161 pubs and bars comprising primarily of Yates’s sites.

Administrators Kroll have 94 pubs previously in the Laurel estate up for sale.

Daily Telegraph article in full>>

Laurel puts 94 pubs up for sale>>

More high profile pub failures predicted>>

By Chistopher Walton

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