London pubs to close as chain goes into administration

A number of pubs have closed after the company behind them entered administration. (Photo by Graeme Robertson/Getty Images)

A number of pubs across London are set to close after the company that operates them entered administration.

Nick Holloway and Steve Absolom of Interpath Advisory have been appointed as joint administrators to RedCat Leased Pubs Limited (RCLP), a subsidiary of the RedCat Group.

RCLP operates 10 pubs across the UK while all other RedCat Group entities continue to trade as normal.

According to Interpath, RCLP has been “impacted by the wider challenges facing the pub sector, notably, recovery since Covid-related lockdowns, changing consumer habits and the cost-of-living crisis“.

Administrators were appointed after the loss-making business was unable to meet its financial obligations, the firm added.

The administrators have started a process to market the leases, business and assets of all of the pubs.

The three tenanted sites will continue to trade together with two of the managed sites.

When Interpath was appointed, the remaining five sites have been closed. RCLP has no employees.

Pubs that will remain open under sub-tenant agreements:

–          Garden Farm (Carlingford Road, Chester-Le-Street)

–          Railway Tavern (The Market Square, Edmonton)

–          Cumberland Arms (North End Road, Kensington)

Managed pubs that remain open:

–          The Bull Inn (Barming, Maidstone)

–          The Occasional Half (Palmers Green, Enfield)

Pub closures:

–          The Redback (Fulham Road, Fulham)

–          Chiltern Taps (Oxford Road, High Wycombe)

–          Elmbridge Arms (Weybridge High Street, Weybridge)

–          The Gatehouse (High Street, Tonbridge)

–          Colton Arms (Greyhound Road, West Kensington)

Nick Holloway, managing director at Interpath Advisory and joint administrator of RCLP, said: “RCLP comprises a group of pub sites in prominent locations, predominantly in London and the South East.

“Financial challenges have weighed heavily on the company in recent years which rendered it unable to continue in its current form.

“The administration now provides a period in which we can undertake a marketing process to explore a sale of business and assets of the pubs either individually or as a group.

“We expect interest from across the industry. Regrettably, the financial position of the business means that five sites have now closed.”