The group behind Frankie and Bennies and Wagamama said that it is planning to raise £175 million through a share sale after it posted a bigger loss due to a hit to its business from Britain’s latest round of lockdowns.
The Restaurant Group posted an adjusted pre-tax loss of £87.5 million for the year ended December compared with £47.9 million a year earlier and said its near-term outlook remained uncertain due to restrictions.
The group has permanently shut 250 restaurants and cut around 3,000 jobs, highlighting the troubles in the hospitality industry .
While all of its sites are shut for dine-in, the company said its delivery and takeaway sales at Wagamama more than doubled from pre-pandemic levels for the four weeks ended February and were up five times for its leisure sites.
