Carluccio’s gets £10m cash injection to ‘revitalise’ 60 restaurants

Carluccio’s has announced it will receive £10m of new funding from majority shareholder Landmark Group to “revitalise” 60 restaurants.

Funding will also go towards refreshing brand standards and on-going food development.

The investment, which will go towards refreshing brand standards and on-going food development, comes after a 28-day ‘challenge’ period in the wake of the Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) that was passed on 17 May.

The company says its creditors voted “overwhelmingly in favour” of the CVA which will see 30 of the chain’s 103 sites shutter.

Carluccio’s CEO Mark Jones, said: “This is an important milestone for the Carluccio’s business and our team, allowing us to now look ahead positively to the future, with a clear plan to re-assert, and build on, our credentials as the UK’s leading Italian restaurant and food company, built on fresh, flavourful dishes.

“The injection of new funding will drive an extensive programme that will elevate the guest experience through enhanced design, food and service. This project will be underpinned by our brand ethos of minimum of fuss, maximum of flavour, which was so passionately championed by our founder Antonio.

“I would again like to express sincere thanks to our landlords for their support during the process and our majority shareholder Landmark Group for backing the management team’s vision for the business.”

The recent cash injection coincides with the company’s annual financial report for the 2017-18 financial year which saw EBITDA fall to £6.5m from £13.2m in the previous year. Carluccio’s also saw a small fall in revenue to £138.2m from previous year revenue of £140.9m.

Jones added: “While these numbers are somewhat historical now, the decrease in underlying profit last year did graphically illustrate the requirement for us to create a more focused group, to divest from loss-making sites, and to invest significantly in our core business, and I am pleased to be able to report this progress in the intervening period.”