Hundreds of jobs have been saved after a well-known restaurant chain with branches across the country was bought out of administration - although two sites are to close.
Officials from Begbies Traynor were appointed joint administrators of City District Limited, which trades as the Fazenda Rodizio Bar & Grill alongside sister brand Picanha by Fazenda, on Monday.
Following the appointment, a "substantial part" of the Huddersfield-based business and assets were acquired by Southern Wind Group Ltd, saving 243 jobs.
Despite the agreement, the firm's Fazenda Birmingham and Picanha Chester were not included in the deal, and both will now close - with 69 people to be made redundant.
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Joint administrator Julian Pitts said: “After more than 10 years of healthy trading, the Fazenda restaurant chain became yet another casualty of the impact of the pandemic on the hospitality sector.
"With the 海角视频 undergoing multiple lockdowns, together with social distancing measures and increased working from home, the restaurant trade has faced one of its toughest periods ever.
“It is good news for employees, customers and suppliers that most of the popular Fazenda eateries will re-open for business once the current restrictions are lifted. We wish them well for the future.”
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The firm is known for its South American-style table-side grilled meats.
A statement on Tuesday said the business had suffered from the impact of prolonged lockdowns and restrictions caused by Covid-19. That resulted in a "significant build-up" of landlord and HMRC arrears which could no longer be serviced without additional funding.
Addleshaw Goddard’s restructuring team in Leeds and Edinburgh advised the joint administrators throughout the sale process. Walker Morris in Leeds acted as advisers to Southern Wind Group.
The new company, headed up by City District Limited’s former chief executive Terence Langley and managing director Tomás Maunier, will continue to trade as ‘Fazenda’ and will retain the Leeds, Manchester, Edinburgh and Liverpool Fazenda sites, saving a total of 243 jobs.
Chief executive of Southern Wind Group Limited, Terence Langley, said, “The pandemic has meant that we have had to regroup and review to navigate the current climate as best we can and put the business in good stead in order to come back strong.
"We have high hopes that Fazenda will find the right place in Birmingham to operate in the near future, and we can continue on the growth path planned pre-COVID."
Managing director Tomás Maunier said, "Unfortunately rent negotiations and significantly reduced cash flow has led to this difficult decision to close two of the restaurants. The hardest part is that we were unable to retain the whole team, though we are extremely proud to have secured over 200 jobs in the process.
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“Despite the closures, we believe that the long-term future is looking bright for both the industry and the brand, and we are looking forward to resuming operations across our other sites in May."
Analysis - A reminder that we are not yet out of the dark
Following what felt like constant announcements about job losses and administrations throughout 2020 and a relative dearth so far in 2021, today's Fazenda news may be uncomfortable listening for those who thought we were through the worst of the pandemic.
But it should serve a reminder that there could still be trouble ahead - and that the impact of Covid on many firms is still to be seen.
Like all hospitality businesses, Fazenda has been battered by lockdowns and restrictions. Luckily, the majority of jobs at the chain have been saved and most of its restaurants will remain open.
But there is a big possibility that others - particularly in the hospitality sector - won't be so fortunate.
That's because despite the positive vaccine rollout and a roadmap to give us light at the end of the tunnel, Government funds including furlough and tax breaks continue to distort the picture.
Once these are phased out, there is a strong possibility of more bad news on the horizon.
Further, even in the event of the Government's June target of opening up society paying off, it's unlikely things will just go back to how they were pre-March 2020. The rise of working from home and a move away from city centres are just two aspects of our lives Covid looks to have changed forever - and this is sure to impact how consumers go about spending their cash.
After all, Fazenda is a popular venue for business lunches and meetings - will that trade return?
We can only hope firms struggling in a similar way to Fazenda are just as fortunate and can find solutions to these issues - for the sake of jobs and livelihoods up and down the country.