Crepe with chocolate sauce and banana

Source: Getty Images / Eleganza

Crêperie café chain Crêpeaffaire has been rescued from administration in a pre-pack deal for £149k.

Business advisory firm Quantuma’s managing directors Brian Burke and Elias Paourou were appointed as joint administrators of the Crêpeaffaire group of companies – comprising Crêpeaffaire Limited, Crêpeaffaire International Limited, and Crêpeaffaire Holdings Limited – on 14 January 2025.

The deal saw seven of Crêpeaffaire’s nine company-owned retail sites sold to Crepe Trading in a move that secured 66 jobs. The sites are Brighton, Bromley, Cambridge, Islington, Leeds, Newcastle, and St Albans. Sites in Chester and Westfield shopping centre in London, meanwhile, were closed.

The franchise business was sold separately and has transferred to Crepe Union.

Notably, Crêpeaffaire directors Allen Kerslake and Daniel Spinath are also the directors and shareholders of Crepe Trading and Crepe Union, respectively.

Established in 2004 as a family-owned business, the first Crêpeaffaire opened in London. The business expanded, secured investment and grew to around 25 sites comprising a mixture of company-owned outlets and franchises in the UK, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait.

It specialises in sweet and savoury crêpes with menu items including smoked salmon & cream cheese, hunters chicken, Nutella, Lotus Biscoff, and banana split flavours.

However, the business has been hit by increasing operating costs. While steps were taken to improve trading and cash performance, the inflationary environment coupled with historic debt levels, meant that securing new/replacement funding and investment was not possible, Quantuma said. Companies House documents for Crêpeaffaire stated that a ‘significant loss’ was anticipated for the current financial year with projections for 2025 also set to be ‘loss-making’.

As a result, Crêpeaffaire entered into an insolvency process.

“I am delighted to have achieved such a positive outcome for this well-established brand, ultimately preserving 66 jobs and its international footprint, with no disruption to ongoing operations. We look forward to seeing Crêpeaffaire achieve success in its next chapter,” Burke said.