London cocktail chain Simmons enters administration amid site closures August 5, 2025 London cocktail chain Simmons has entered administration after announcing plans to close at least four sites as it became the latest victim of the immense cost pressure facing hospitality firms. The upmarket bar group, which had operated more than 20 venues across the UK, has appointed advisory firm Kroll to oversee the administration, company filings [...]
Bad habits: Ed Sheeran’s music school in the red before rescue amid huge debts August 1, 2025 The Surrey music school, whose former students include Ed Sheeran and the 1975’s Matty Healy, fell into the red before being taken over, its latest corporate filings show. The Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) in Guildford has posted a pre-tax loss of £797,474 for its latest financial year – the 12 months to 31 August, [...]
Agritech firm Vertical Future put up for sale on insolvency marketplace after losses widen July 30, 2025 One of Britain’s biggest vertical farming businesses has been put up for sale on an insolvency marketplace after reporting widening losses, City AM can reveal. London-based Vertical Future, which has raised more than £37m in capital since it was founded in 2016, saw its losses surpass £10m in 2024 after turnover tumbled from £6.7m to [...]
Gusto: Restaurants to close and almost 200 jobs lost as rescue agreed July 29, 2025 Almost 200 jobs have been lost at Italian restaurant chain Gusto after a deal to buy it out of administration was agreed. Cherry Equity Partners is to acquire the majority of Gusto in a move which will lead to around 190 redundancies and the closure of six restaurants. The deal, which is being undertaken through [...]
Insolvencies ease in signs of UK businesses’ resilience July 18, 2025 Insolvencies declined slightly in June in signs UK businesses under pressure from higher costs have weathered through tax rises and low national spirits. In new data published by the Insolvency Service, company insolvencies fell by eight per cent in June compared to the month before. The number of insolvencies – 2,043 – was also 16 [...]
Taxpayer-backed gaming studio collapses into administration July 8, 2025 A company backed by the UK government’s British Business Bank and has worked with some of the world’s largest gaming companies has collapsed into administration. Airship Interactive provides artwork for the likes of Disney, Microsoft and Blizzard and has contributed to titles such as Spider-Man, FC24 and Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order. The British Business [...]
Gino D’Acampo: Restaurant empire’s huge debts revealed before rescue June 9, 2025 The company behind TV chef Gino D’Acampo’s restaurant empire owed more than £11m as it collapsed into administration, it has been revealed. Upmarket Leisure Ltd, which controlled the former This Morning star’s venues, was served with a wind-up petition by HMRC in March and moved to appoint an administrator before being saved in a £5m [...]
How Steven Bartlett’s first Dragons’ Den investment collapsed May 14, 2025 The full story of how the first company that Steven Bartlett invested in when he joined hit BBC One show Dragons’ Den collapsed and was rescued has been revealed for the first time. City AM reported in March that artisan cheese retailer Cheesegeek had been acquired by Scotland-based Albex Group for what was then described [...]
Pizza Hut: The fortune owed by firm behind UK restaurants before rescue May 12, 2025 The company behind Pizza Hut’s restaurants in Britain owed more than £50m as it collapsed before being rescued, it has been revealed. Heart With Smart (HWS) was saved in January by an entity controlled by investment firm Directional Capital in a deal which salvaged all but one Pizza Hut location. Its new owner was the [...]
Technicolor: Visual effects studio owed over £100m ahead of collapse April 28, 2025 More than £100m was owed by Technicolor, the visual effects company which worked on films ranging from Disney’s 1940 Pinocchio to 2024’s Mufasa The Lion King when it collapsed into administration in the UK, it has been revealed. Interpath was appointed to oversee the process at the business in February in a move which also [...]