Laurel Pub Company puts 94 sites on the market

In an anticipated move, Laurel Pub Company has put 94 of its struggling leasehold sites on the market.

The properties predominantly include wet-led brand names including Yates's, Hogs Head, Litten Tree and Bar Med, as well as a number of Ha Ha and Slug & Lettuce sites. The pubs are being marketed by property agents Colliers CRE and Davis Coffer Lyons.

According to an announcement from Colliers the sites "represent excellent opportunities to acquire sites in established trading locations which are already fully or partially fitted out".

The pubs are situated across the UK from Scotland to the South West of England. A number are understood to be available at nil premium.

Up to 20 Laurel pubs, mainly Yates's, have been on the market for some time.

A spokeswoman for Laurel said that 22 of the 94 venues were closed. "The pubs up for sale represent a selection of branded and unbranded sites," she said.

Staff affected by the pubs going onto the market had been told of the situation, she added, and Laurel was "doing its very best to limit redundancies". She was unable to confirm the number of positions that would be hit by the move.

Looking forward, Laurel's position was "fluid", the spokeswoman said. "What happens next will be determined by how successful the sale proves to be. Laurel is looking at a number of [corporate] options," she added, although she declined to outline what these might be.

Observers have suggested that following the group's planned refinancing programme, due to be completed in the next few months, Laurel might choose to hive off part of its portfolio into a separate listed vehicle or 'ring-fence' a number of underperforming outlets in an arms-length entity.