Various news outlets have been posting over the last few days about local TGI Fridays locations shutting down. Now, CNN has the scoop, reporting that the chain "abruptly" closed down almost 50 restaurants over the past week as it's reportedly heading for bankruptcy. Per the chain's own restaurant locator, there are only 164 TGI Fridays left as of Monday, while last week there were 213. At the beginning of 2024, there were 270.
The latest slew of shutdowns before this one took place in January, when three dozen "underperforming" locations turned their lights off for the last time. Bloomberg reported earlier this month that the chain was "huddling with new and potential lenders" to try to acquire financing ahead of seeking bankruptcy protection, money that would help it keep remaining restaurants running as it goes through Chapter 11.
No official list has been released of stores that were shuttered, but CNN relies on local media to show that restaurants in California, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Florida, and Missouri have closed. Debtwire's John Bringardner tells CNN he expects a bankruptcy filing to happen in November, and that the chain "will likely use Chapter 11 to seek a buyer for some portion of its business, to reject leases for unprofitable locations, and to restructure its debt so it can emerge from bankruptcy with a smaller but still viable footprint." (More TGI Fridays stories.)
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