RICHARD CARING'S SEXY FISH AMONG TOP RESTAURANTS HIT BY LOSSES AS IT HEADS FOR £1BN SALE

Part of the hospitality empire owned by billionaire Richard Caring, which includes high-profile venues such as Sexy Fish, has reported losses amid discussions about a potential £1bn sale.

Caprice Holdings, the group behind establishments like Scott's and Bacchanalia, faced delays in publishing its 2023 figures, having missed the Companies House deadline by eight months, as reported by City AM.

According to recently filed documents, the segment within Caring's portfolio recorded a pre-tax loss of £5.9 million for the year, a downturn from the £1.1 million profit seen in 2022.

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Despite the losses, Caprice Holdings saw revenues climb from £74.3 million to £97 million during the same period.

With a September deadline looming, Caprice Holding is set to submit its financial statements for 2024.

Sexy Fish owner battles costs hikes

The opening statement from the board highlights: "Trading surpassed the prior period with previous site openings yielding their first full year results along with the opening of Sexy Fish in Manchester."

Acknowledging the economic environment, the report acknowledges: "Whilst inflationary pressures reduced consumer confidence in contracts to the bounce-back highs of the prior post-pandemic period, the company's position provided compelling for our customers which contributed to another impressive year."

The statement further detailed the challenges presented by increasing overheads: "This is notable considering the cost headwinds faced in the first half of the year from energy prices and knock on costs from the supply chain and interest rate hikes."

Over the year under review, the workforce at the company expanded significantly, growing from 822 to 1,078 employees.

Talks over £1bn sale continue

Meanwhile, negotiations regarding a deal estimated to be worth around £1 billion are still ongoing.

The results follow a report by the FT last week that Richard Caring is in advanced negotiations to sell a significant part of his UK hospitality empire to an entity controlled by the influential Abu Dhabi Royal Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan.

This deal would include the Ivy restaurant chain and London's private members' club, Annabel's.

As per the FT, the sale could be valued at more than £1bn.

The potential transaction was initially reported at the end of 2023 and again in September 2024, but there has been no further update from the company or its investors since then.

Caring holds up to a 50 per cent stake in the business behind The Ivy chain, with other shareholders including the former Qatari prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin-Jaber al-Thani.

In April, City AM reported that the group behind The Ivy restaurant chain cut 300 jobs in 2023.

The significantly delayed results revealed that The Ivy's owner reduced its workforce from 5,962 to 5,663 in the year, while its pre-tax profit rose from £29m to £37.6m.

They also showed that its revenue increased from £302.9m to £314.7m over the same period.

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2025-05-23T08:43:57Z