B
uzz Bingo announced the permanent closure of 26 halls in the UK with the potential loss of 573 jobs after its business was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The plans involve the closure of sites in Bournemouth, Carlisle, Milton Keynes and Wolverhampton on August 3. Buzz said it planned to reopen the remaining 91 of its 117 bingo halls from August 6.
The Nottingham-based bingo chain, which formerly traded as Gala Bingo, said it had taken the decision due to an “unsustainable operating environment for the foreseeable future“. The firm will launch a rescue restructure via an insolvency procedure known as a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), which will allow it to exit unwanted properties and cut rents, The Guardian reports.
Caledonia Investments, which bought the bingo operator in 2015, has said it will put up £22m of extra funds while the firm’s lenders will provide £10m of new debt as part of the restructure deal. Landlords and other creditors will vote on the plan. All the bingo halls were forced to temporarily close in March as part of the government’s high street lockdown intended to dampen the spread of Covid-19.
However, the firm said it would take time for visitor numbers to return to pre-coronavirus levels because physical distancing measures and confidence about socialising indoors would take time to rebuild, particularly among older customers.
Buzz Bingo employs 3,400 people, most of whom are on furlough under the government’s job retention scheme. “The ongoing pandemic has had far-reaching consequences for the entire leisure and hospitality sector and an immediate and significant impact on our business,” the company’s CEO Chris Matthews, said. “Following a thorough review of our options, the proposed CVA will restructure our retail portfolio to ensure we are well positioned for a return to growth, while adapting to the ongoing, challenging environment as we start to reopen the majority of our clubs.”
The 26 sites earmarked for closure are: Chatham, Salford, Salisbury, Antelope Park (Southampton), Banbury, Boston, Bournemouth, Bridlington, Carlisle, Chorley, Cramlington, Derby Foresters, Edinburgh Westerhailes, Harpurhey (Manchester), Hereford, Kilmarnock, Milton Keynes, Oxford Kassam, Stockland Green, Tamworth, Wednesbury, Weymouth, Wigan Robin Park, Wolverhampton, Worcester, Wythenshawe.
