After the original Hooters operator filed for administration a new business intends to continue under the same brand
Staff at Hooters Liverpool
A city centre councillor said he ‘believes strongly’ that a Hooters venue should not continue under the same brand after the company running the restaurant filed for administration. On Monday the ECHO exclusively revealed that Beauvoir Developments Ltd, which had been running the Hooters franchise out of New Zealand House in Water Street had appointed a liquidator, with the firm in the process of being wound up.
Administrator Molly Monks of insolvency firm Parker Walsh, told the ECHO the director of Beauvoir Developments, Rachael Moss, had cited a combination of economic challenges behind the financial problems of the company – including rising operational costs and ‘devastating flood damage’.
However, Ms Monks also confirmed a new business has already commenced operations from the same location and will continue to utilise the Hooters brand. This news has not gone down well with Cllr Nick Small, who represents the area of the city centre where the business is based.
The Hooters restaurant on Water Street in Liverpool(Image: Liverpool Echo)
In an email to Ms Monks, Cllr Small said: “I note from the quote that you have given in today’s Liverpool Echo article that a new business has commenced operations from the location and will continue to utilise the Hooters brand.
“I believe strongly that this part of the city is not an appropriate location for the Hooters brand, as its poor financial performance has demonstrated. Water Street is a conservation area and New Zealand House is next door to an important listed building Oriel Chambers. I very much hope that this is an opportunity for a new start and for a more appropriate business to open up here.”
In his email, Cllr Small also referenced the various planning issues related to the Hooters venue that he said have affected local residents including a long-running row about the orange Hooters signs on the building which has ended up in court. There were also issues raised by neighbouring businesses about an extractor fan causing noise issues in the area.
Hooters was a controversial addition to Liverpool from the start after it became only the second site for the US company in the UK. It was granted a licence in 2022 despite then Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson claiming the chain had an “infamously sexually objectifying and misogynistic environment.”