Shoosmiths advises Tasty plc on restructuring plan

Experts from Shoosmiths’ corporate restructuring and advisory team have led the restaurant group Tasty PLC through a successful restructuring plan which was sanctioned at a hearing on 4 June 2024. The plan will allow a comprehensive restructuring of the Group’s business and stabilise its future.

This restructuring plan is the first restructuring plan of a trading mid-market listed company and one of only 24 restructuring plans that have been sanctioned since restructuring plans were announced in 2020.

The Group which operates the Wildwood and Dim T brands, announced in April that it would be closing a number of sites due to difficult recent trading conditions in the hospitality sector. 

Under this plan, the Group will be able to continue operating 37 sites, securing more than 700 jobs. This outcome illustrates how restructuring plans offer a real alternative to a formal insolvency process and a useful tool to reshape a business to achieve a better outcome for all stakeholders.

Shoosmiths’ multidisciplinary team, worked alongside FRP Advisory to achieve the outcome for the Group. The team was led by corporate restructuring and advisory partner Sarah Teal and supported by partner Richard Bellamy, partner Paul Carney, principal associate Hannah Gaskell, associate Sarah Minshull, trainee solicitor Jen Armstead, partner Anna Robson, senior associate Kat Raanan, trainee solicitor Robyn Lightowlers, senior associate Leonie Byrne and principal associate Sophie Davies.

Shoosmiths’ Sarah Teal said: "It was a pleasure to have advised Tasty PLC on its restructuring plan which will allow the business to emerge stronger from the challenges posed by economic market pressures. The hospitality sector was understandably one of the hardest hit by the Covid-19 crisis, and has been further knocked by the cost of living crisis and interest rate rises. We wish the Tasty team all the best for the future."

Phil Reynolds, partner at FRP Advisory, said: “Since their introduction in 2020 we’ve seen restructuring plans provide more and more businesses with a viable alternative to the insolvency process. This case is just the latest example of how effective it can be in providing a better outcome for all stakeholders, including where a company is AIM-listed. Tasty now has the platform it needs to pursue its strategy for future growth. We look forward to seeing how the business continues to develop in the years ahead.”

Jonny Plant, chief executive of Tasty PLC, said: "We are grateful to Shoosmiths for their excellent advice and support throughout this process. The whole team across every department involved were at all times extremely efficient and commercial whilst retaining the highest levels of professionalism. They were all instrumental in helping the Company navigate its way through some so far unchartered and complicated areas of the law. The restructure was a vital step for Tasty PLC to secure the future of our business and protect as many jobs as possible. We look forward to working with Shoosmiths again as we continue to grow and develop our brands."

Shoosmiths’ leading corporate restructuring and advisory team were appointed on the high-profile administration of Wilko last year and has recently been shortlisted for Restructuring Team of the Year at The Lawyer Awards.

Corporate is one of Shoosmiths’ key strategic pillars and the team has been named the most active law firm advising on M&A deals in the UK (according to Experian Market IQ reports). Across its corporate division, Shoosmiths’ team has bolstered its market leading credentials and reputation for excellence in the mid-market, advising on upwards of 400 transactions a year.