Huge restaurant chain TGI that opened first branch in Birmingham 'to sell all UK sites'

Bosses are said to be looking to sell all UK TGI's by the end of the month

The future of TGI Fridays has fallen into doubt after reports that the major US chain is set to sell all of its UK restaurants. TGI's has 87 sites across the country, but opened its first UK restaurant in Birmingham almost four decades ago.

The American cocktail bar and bistro opened its first British branch in Hagley Road in 1986 and the brand has become a popular destination for birthday parties and special occasions. In the early 1990s, the Covent Garden TGI's was reported to be the busiest restaurant in Europe.

However, the firm's UK owner, Hostmore, has seen its share price collapse in the last week after it revealed ambitious plans to buy up outlets in the US. Following the announcement, the company's share price fell by 96 per cent compared to the start of September to just 22p on Monday this week.

Read more: Much-loved Birmingham restaurant closes as bosses say business is 'no longer viable'

The Mirror reported that bosses are now hoping to secure a rapid sale of all TGI restaurants in the UK by the end of this month, prompting concerns that the familiar brand could vanish from Britain's high streets.

The chain was acquired by a private equity firm ten years ago, with a rebrand removing all the punctuation from the restaurant name to make it TGI Fridays. Then, in 2021, the company was spun out into Hostmore, a listed company, and the restaurants were briefly renamed just ‘Fridays’ before marketing chiefs found customers still called it ‘TGI’s’ and restored the original name.

In recent times, the brand's restaurants have seen a drop in sales, falling by more than a tenth this year compared to the last. Reports suggest that TGI's will soon become a fully-franchise-operated model.

The sale process, which is predicted to be completed by the end of the month, is expected to result in Hostmore being wound up and delisted from the London Stock Exchange. Its UK restaurants, which serve New York-influenced food and cocktails, continue to stay open as normal.

It's unclear whether all TGI's restaurants will be saved, or just a selection, with others potentially being taken over by another chain. BirminghamLive contacted TGI's for comment.

The chain has branches at Hagley Road, NEC and Sutton Coldfield.