A series of restaurant rebrandings and a public apology for underpayment of staff has not been enough to save George Calombaris’ embattled hospitality group Made Establishment, which was placed into voluntary administration yesterday. Almost of all its venues will cease trading immediately, affecting 400 employees.
Advisory firm KordaMentha announced Craig Shepard and Leanne Chesser have been appointed administrators of the 22 companies under the melbourne group’s portfolio, which includes The Press Club and Hellenic Republic (which both recently rebranded as Elektra Dining Room and Crofter Dining Room & Bar respectively) and souvlaki eateries Jimmy Grants, which has seven locations across Melbourne. Frozen yoghurt shops Yo-Chi will continue to trade as usual.
“The appointment follows declining trade across venues since the announcement of an enforceable undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman after self-disclosure of underpayments at the Group’s Press Club, Gazi and Hellenic Republic restaurants up to 2017,” said KordaMentha in a statement.
The statement also attributed increasing costs, industry competition, diners’ growing preference for “cheaper, mid-tier dining options” and the…
