A BAR in Reading is among nearly 40 set to to close following a major takeover of a UK brand.
Craft brewers and venue owners BrewDog have announced that nearly 40 bars around the UK, including one in central Reading, have closed with immediate effect after the firm went into administration.
The company, based in Scotland, has been taken over by a US drinks and medicinal cannabis company, Tilray, after it hired consultants last month to fix ailing finances.
Consultants AlixPartners were appointed administrators, and have confirmed that the company has been sold off in a deal worth £33 million.
With 38 bars instantly closed around the UK, more than 480 staff were made redundant, though administrators said that more than 700 positions had been ‘preserved’.
While most of the brand’s venues are set to close, a few will remain after they were named in acquisition agreements, including several in London and Edinburgh.
Union leaders have criticised the handling of the sale, with Unite general secretary Sharon Graham saying that workers at the brand had been treated as “disposable”.
