Luminar entertainment division not for sale

Bar, restaurant and nightclub operator Luminar has ruled out the imminent sale of its struggling entertainment division in response to press speculation that a sale was on the cards.

In July, the company took the entertainment division, which contains Jumpin' Jaks and Chicago Rock Café, off the market because it hadn't received any satisfactory offers.

Since then there has been media speculation that a deal was being negotiated behind the scenes, however, the company dismissed this in a statement today.

"We have appointed new management, which is focusing on restoring the performance of the business," it said.

In its interim results earlier this month Luminar said the entertainment division had performed "relatively poorly" over the period with like-for-like sales down 6% and turnover down £2.9m to £52.4m.

Despite this, Luminar's directors said they remained confident the new management team were making progress in turning performance around.

Luminar has also today purchased 10 nightclubs from the Nightclub Company for £9.8m in cash.

By Chris Druce

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