Black Sheep Brewery has announced a “small number” of redundancies at its head offices in Masham.
In a statement, the brewery also said three of its pubs in Leeds and York would close with immediate effect.
A spokesperson for Black Sheep said the redundancies would be made in its retail arm.
Meanwhile, The Tap & Kitchen and Mr. Foleys in Leeds, along with The Last Drop Inn in York, will shut following an “extensive review” of the brewery.
A spokesperson said:
“Having recently conducted an extensive review of our business, we have explored every angle to try to keep these locations trading profitably, but without success.
“Unfortunately, the only avenue left for us was the closure of these premises. It is always the last resort for us to make redundancies, and we are saddened to see such dedicated colleagues leaving us, at this time.”
Read more:
- London investment firm buys Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery
- Suppliers owed £3m after Black Sheep Brewery sale
- Sale of Black Sheep Brewery prevented ‘local employment catastrophe’, says CEO
Breal Capital bought the brewery for £5 million on May 26 as part of a pre-package administration deal.
Teneo Financial Advisory, which was appointed as administrators of Black Sheep, revealed sales fell from a high of £19 million in 2019 to £14 million last year, which resulted in a £1.6 million loss.
It added the company’s performance “suffered during the covid pandemic and trading challenges continued as a result of the current economic environment”.
The move also left creditors, including HMRC and suppliers, owed nearly £3 million.
Following the sale, Charlene Lyons, who was kept on as chief executive of Black Sheep, warned that other breweries faced administration amid the current economic climate.
London investment firm buys Masham’s Black Sheep BreweryA London investment firm has bought troubled Black Sheep Brewery in Masham.
Black Sheep announced early this month it intended to appoint administrators after being hit hard by covid and rising costs.
Breal Capital was reported to be leading the race to acquire the company.
Today the news was confirmed in a short statement which did not reveal how much had been paid for the business.
However, the news saved about 50 jobs in Masham and more in the supply chain.
The new owners said it had “a proven track record of successfully transforming and growing the businesses it acquires”.
A spokesperson for the new Black Sheep Brewing Company said:
“We are pleased to announce that Black Sheep Brewery has been acquired by the Breal Group and has become Black Sheep Brewing Company Limited, trading as Black Sheep Brewery.
“This marks the next chapter in the history of Black Sheep as we look to grow the business in a sustainable way.
“Our team will continue to produce great beers from our landmark brewery in Masham, North Yorkshire and we look forward to welcoming bank holiday customers and tourists to all our retail sites this weekend.
“Breal has a proven track record of successfully transforming and growing the businesses it acquires through the private capital, operational resources, and strategic expertise it brings and we look forward to working closely with the team.”
Read more:
- Talks to buy Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery reported to be underway
- Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery to enter administration
Talks to buy Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery reported to be underway
A London investment firm is in talks to buy Masham’s troubled Black Sheep Brewery, according to media reports today.
The brewery, which employs about 50 staff, said last week it intended to appoint administrators after being hit hard by covid and rising costs.
Sky News reported Breal Capital has emerged as the leading contender to acquire the company, which was founded in 1992 by Paul Theakston.
Sky News said “other bidders remained in contention to acquire the business, and that a deal with Breal was not yet certain”.
It added the brewery asked interested parties to table offers by last Friday, and cited a pre-pack administration as one possible outcome.
Breal Capital is part of Breal Group, which did not respond to the Stray Ferret’s request for comment today.
Charlene Lyons, Black Sheep Brewery’s chief executive, said last week:
“The business has been hit very hard by the pandemic and the sudden rise in all costs.
“It has been the perfect storm, but the team are confident that with a new structure Black Sheep will thrive and grow as the team set course in a new direction.”
Read more:
- Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery to enter administration
- Cowpat makes Masham woman £2,000 richer
- Masham businesses fear impact if troubled Black Sheep Brewery closes
Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery to enter administration
Masham’s Black Sheep Brewery has announced it is to appoint administrators.
Last month, the company, which employs about 50 staff, launched a strategic review to explore funding options to develop the business. One option was to sell the company.
However, the firm announced in a trading update on Friday it was “no longer considering the sale of the company”.
Today, in a further statement, the company has announced it is set to appoint administrators.
It said:
“On 11 April 2023, the company announced it had commenced a review of its strategic options, including the possibility of an acquisition of the company in all or in part, given constraints on its funding. On 27 April 2023, the company made a further announcement explaining that it was no longer seeking an acquisition of the entire issued share capital of the company, but it was still considering a sale of the business and assets of the company.
“The board of the company has resolved to file a notice of intention to appoint Kristian Shuttleworth and Clare Boardman of Teneo Financial Advisory Limited as administrators to the company and BSB Retail Limited.”
Black Sheep, which was founded in 1992 by Paul Theakston, said it had made the decision to “protect the interests of its creditors”.
It added that “no shares will be traded on asset match until further notice” as a result of the move.
It comes as the company appointed Teneo as its financial adviser to support its review in April.
At the time, Black Sheep said it was experiencing good sales volumes of its beers, however there remains a significant constraint on funding due to economic conditions.
Read More:
- Harrogate hospital to remove parking barriers to ease traffic queues
- Business Breakfast: New chef and manager at Provenance inn
Business Breakfast: Harrogate marketing agency makes four appointments amid growth
Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal.
A Harrogate marketing agency has made four new appointments after a period of growth.
Extreme, which is based at Windsor House, said it has seen an increase in enquiries from companies despite the tough economic climate.
The firm has appointed account manager Eliza Carroll and delivery executive Josh Parker to its client services team, while Rob Curtis joins as a senior digital designer and Rebecca Bailey as PPC executive.
James Brunyard, client services director at Extreme, said:
“We’re already really looking forward to 2023 and our great new hires are testament to the fact that post-pandemic recovery continues, even with the current climate.
“Brands are ready to invest in their marketing again and we’re in the perfect position to help.”
Black Sheep wins at international beer awards
Black Sheep Brewery won five awards at this year’s International Beer Challenge.
The Masham-based brewery saw its Cry Wolf IPA win a gold award in the IPA category and its Black Sheep Ale pick up silver in the British Style Pale Ales & Bitters (4.1-5%) category.
Black Sheep Brewery staff with the five beers which picked up awards.
Meanwhile, the brewery saw its 54 Yorkshire lager, Milk Stout and its IPA Interrobang all win bronze.
The company said on its website:
“We’re over the moon with these awards, and along with other awards in the bag this year, it’s safe to say we’ve had a great 30th year.”
The International Beer Challenge is held annually and aim to “reward and promote excellent beers from around the globe”.
Read more:
- Sneak Peek: Starling shows off new spacious bar after major renovation
- Betfred to open bookmakers in Harrogate
Harrogate Town submits major new ground redevelopment plans
Harrogate Town has submitted major new plans to redevelop its Wetherby Road ground.
The club has until April 30, 2024 to provide a capacity of 5,000 fans with a minimum of 2,000 seats to comply with English Football League membership criteria.
It currently caters for 5,000 fans but only has 1,000 seats.
Planning documents published today by Harrogate Borough Council reveal the club has applied to convert the Black Sheep and Myrings standing terraces to seated areas, providing 603 seats.
It also intends to demolish the 1919 venue and construct a new 1919 terrace with seating, a spectator refreshment area and toilets.
The club also wants to install ball stop netting and has submitted a separate planning application for a temporary marquee containing a refreshment bar.
David Smith, associate director of planning consultants WSP, which is acting on behalf of the club, said in a letter to the council:
“The proposed works will provide additional seating and spectator facilities for existing fans.
“The new spectator facility will encourage away fans to get to the ground earlier on match days and ease congestion immediately before kick-off.
“As such, the proposals will not give rise to any significant traffic congestion and road safety problems.
The club needs to create another 1,000 more seats.
The club previously applied to build a new, bigger South Stand.
Mr Smith’s letter said:
“This further application proposes an alternative, less disruptive and more efficient means of achieving the EFL requirement.
“There will be less demolition of existing buildings and a quicker construction programme with this proposal.
“This proposal will also help improve the match day experience. The proposal will mark an important step in the on-going success of the club.”
Read more:
- Temporary bar to open at Harrogate Town in fortnight
- Final appeal for donations towards £10k cost of Harrogate bonfire
‘Aim to start in December’
The Stray Ferret asked Harrogate Town, which secured promotion from the National League to the EFL for the first time in the club’s history in 2020, how much the project will cost and when it hopes work will take place.
A club spokesman said:
“Cost – we don’t know as yet, we are still working through the preliminary work but needed to get the application through early to reach the target date for having 2,000 seats.
“We aim to start in December/January time subject to planning and be ready for the start of season 2023 though we may still have some internal works to finish.”
We also asked how the club will handle the disruption on match days and what happens if the club, which is currently 21st of 24 in division two of the English Football League, gets relegated.
The spokesman said:
Hot Seat: A bold new approach at Black Sheep“No plans to move any games, work can be done in between games and facilities may be affected on match days at the away end but suitable provisions will be made if that’s the case.
“The plans will progress as we are aiming to improve facilities and match day experience for our loyal supporters and we have more families visiting us now to cater for, plus we hope to attract more first generation fans as we grow.”
Masham is the small town in the Harrogate district with a big reputation for beauty and beer.
Set in sumptuous Wensleydale, it is home to two major breweries — Theakston and Black Sheep.
The breweries, which boost the town’s economy and provide jobs, have been around so long it’s hard to imagine Masham without them. But the future at Black Sheep looked far from rosy a few years ago.
The company, which was founded by Paul Theakston in 1991 when he became the black sheep of the family by setting up a rival to the brewery created by his family in 1827, was running at a loss.
The chairman asked Charlene Lyons, who had set up her own consultancy at the age of 29 in 2007, if she would consider becoming chief executive.
Ms Lyons knew what she was getting into: her consultancy had been brought in to help Black Sheep in 2016 and she had joined the board in 2018. She says:
“It was a business that had not had much external objectivity. It had been making a loss for four or five years.”
Charlene Lyons
For Newcastle-born Ms Lyons, it was an appealing new challenge.
The daughter of a market trader, she grew up fiercely determined to be a successful businesswoman. She cut her teeth as a fashion buyer for Marks & Spencer in London and her career was flying but her dad’s sudden death when she was just 23 had a profound effect.
Gradually her mindset changed and by the time the top job at Black Sheep became available the prospect of working in the Dales appealed more than corporate city life.
Ms Lyons, who sleeps for just three or four hours a night, now enjoys the scenic commute to work from Leeds at 5.45am. She says:
“It’s the most beautiful drive to an incredible part of the world, for a business that is deep rooted in the most amazing heritage and culture.”
Future planning
There was plenty to occupy her mind on those early morning drives when she started the job. Weeks after becoming chief executive, covid struck.
Black Sheep was quick to respond, staging regular coronavirus planning meetings from January 2020, when much of the world was laughing it off.
As the situation worsened, the company instigated a raft of measures, such as improving its online shop, securing third party packaging to reduce its reliance on one supplier and alerting supermarkets to the availability of its products. Online sales increased from about £100,000 to £800,000 during the first covid year.
Black Sheep also offered a ‘brew to you’ delivery service, which involved delivering beer to the end of people’s drives and provided a local food delivery service in Masham. A future strategy team was set up to plan for life after covid. Ms Lyons said:
“So many businesses didn’t have the bandwidth to think about the future during covid.”
Ms Lyons’ bold and forward thinking approach helped the company recover at a time when covid had a devastating impact on the hospitality trade. Besides furlough, Black Sheep received no business rate freeze or grants despite the catastrophic impact of pub closures.
Read more:
The latest annual accounts, for the financial year ending March 31, 2021, revealed the company made a profit of £1m but an operating loss of £1.1m due to exceptional items, such as redundancy payments.
Considering the circumstances, this was an impressive set of results. The accounts also reveal how much covid changed the business model. They state: “Our off trade business grew its turnover from £6,864,988 to £9,547,261, our on trade turnover was decimated, reducing from £9,838,810 to £2,245,457.”
The current strategy focuses on providing a direct route to market, rather than relying on third parties, and ‘owning Yorkshire’, which means getting its products in every pub, bar and other retail outlet selling beer in the county.
The brewery in Masham.
Black Sheep exports to 12 countries but overseas trade is a very small part of its business.
Its fresh approach to marketing is epitomised in its recent drink cask beer campaign, featuring comedian Maisie Adam, which aims to break down what Ms Lyons calls the “ridiculous stereotype” that only men aged over 55 drink cask beer.
Ms Lyons is rather tired of another cliché: that being a female chief executive in the world of beer is frowned upon.
“It’s not been an issue at all. The perception is more in the eye of the beholder. People always ask ‘what’s it like to be a CEO in a make dominated brewery?’ But in my experience everybody is taken at face value. It doesn’t occupy even a tiny bit of my thinking.”
Outside work she enjoys travel, food and wine. Being the mother of three sporty children, she also spends a lot of time driving them around.
Masham may seem a long way from corporate life but managing a team of 146 staff in such difficult time is no easy task, particularly when you throw in challenges like the cost of living crisis and rampant inflation.
But Ms Lyons looks back on the last two-and-a-half years at the helm with satisfaction.
“We’ve done an exceptional job. Many businesses have just folded.
“Hospitality has been one of the most affected sectors and we had no government support except furlough.
“You have two choices with challenges: slump your shoulders and let things overtake you or rally the troops and do something about it.”
£1 a pint: Harrogate pub’s pre-lockdown deal
Christies Bar on Kings Road, Harrogate is selling pints of cask ale for £1 today to shift the last of its beer before lockdown begins tomorrow.
Landlord Marik Scatchard told the Stray Ferret it had around 200 pints of Black Sheep and Roosters beer to sell this afternoon — and once it’s gone, it’s gone.
Mr Scatchard said business this week had not been as busy as expected and the offer would save the beer from a probable fate down the plug-hole.
He was disappointed the pub has been forced to close due to the month-long lockdown, and is waiting for news on financial support from the government. He said:
“There really hasn’t been any [financial] help this time. We still had to pay full rent last time for three months, which was a bit of a nightmare.
“We’re covid-secure and have had no issues since reopening.”
Mr Scatchard said he was unsure if there would be a melancholic atmosphere at Christies this evening, as drinkers sup their final pints for several weeks.
He hopes the pub will be able to welcome its regulars back on December 2.
Read more: