Simpson's Tavern facing ‘perilous' future despite ‘generosity' of supporters
The general manager of Simpson's Tavern in the City of London has said the future of the pub is "incredibly perilous" despite the "amazing generosity" seen in response to its crowdfund.
The pub, known to be London's oldest chophouse and believed to have been frequented by author Charles Dickens, launched a crowdfunding campaign earlier this month after it claimed that it was forced to close by its landlord.
The campaign had raised £99,065 (as of 21 November) of its £385,000 target, a sum which it had said would "ensure the future of this institution in its entirety".
The six-figure sum would allow for the full repayment of rent arrears accrued since the beginning of the pandemic and compensation for staff.
Benjamin Duggan, who has been general manager of the pub for six years, told The Caterer that "the generosity we've seen in the crowdfunding platform has been absolutely amazing and we really are very, very grateful, but we are in a very tight spot here".
Simpson's Tavern has been closed since the landlord "took the property back" on 16 October through the issuing of a forfeiture notice.
Duggan added: "The circumstances [the landlords have] put us in now is incredibly perilous and I'm now deeply concerned I don't know how we come back from this.
"We've also now lost November's trade, we'll lose December's trade and that's maybe 40% of our revenue over a year, so even if we fund out of it in a capital raise, we've got some very, very serious cash flow problems down the track."
He explained that the business is currently undergoing consultations for a process of redundancy. There were originally 20 on the team, but some employees have already decided to leave.
He said: "[The landlords have] almost fatally stabbed us at the most vulnerable time so we have deep concerns as to how we're going to come out of this and there seems to be very little in the way of appetite for the landlord to engage. We've got a very high mountain to climb."
Hartnell Taylor Cook, agents for Tavor Holdings, the Bermuda-based landlord of Simpson's Tavern, told The Caterer: "It is important to stress that the issue here is with the tenant, not with Simpson's. The tenant, Restaurant EC3 Limited, is under the control of its sole director and owner Mr Sarvindra Singh.
"He has consistently failed to settle commitments or engage meaningfully in negotiations over several years. This has amounted to arrears including VAT of £336,634.16, and the landlords had no choice but to act."
According to Hartnell Taylor Cook, from July this year, negotiations were held between both parties. The agent said that on 26 October, Restaurant EC3 Limited paid £19,000, the balance of the rent for the September 2022 quarter, but that "a further proposal was deemed not to be credible and therefore rejected".
They added: "While the landlords were sympathetic to non-payment of rent in 2020 when Covid-19 was at its peak, there can be no justification for the tenant's lack of payment of insurance and service charges for the period, nor can there be any reasonable basis for the tenant to have traded fully for more than a year since July 2021 without making payment of any rent, except for a small sum after proceedings were initiated.
"The landlords still hope to find a solution that keeps Simpson's Tavern, and Mr Duggan, in business and employment for years to come."
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