Hospitality and Leisure

• Leading two class actions (the Hospitality Insurance Group Action (HIGA) and the Hiscox Action Group (HAG)), to support hotel and other hospitality clients' attempts to claim for COVID-related losses under business interruption insurance policies.
• Acting on a number of significant disputes involving luxury hotels that have proceeded to hearing or trial stage, many of which cover the operational aspects of a hotel business including finances, valuation, refurbishments and operation of the market.
• Acting for Duet Group Limited, defending a complex claim worth €50m brought by Barthélemy Holdings LLC in the Commercial Court concerning a substantial luxury hotel and villa development on the island of St Barthélemy in the Caribbean.
• Advising Hilton Group (UK) on terms and conditions, arbitration matters, television supply and marketing arrangements.
• Advising Kew Green Group in connection with a new joint venture in Thailand, along with general corporate and commercial advice.
• Advising Manhattan Loft Corporation on the Chiltern Firehouse restaurant and hotel in Marylebone, which was redeveloped in a joint venture with New York hotelier Andre Balazs.
• Advising Matterhorn Capital and Leisure on the acquisition of Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Resort, St Lucia and on the acquisition, financing and subsequent disposal of Hotel Palais Maeterlinck, Nice, France.
• Advising Moor Park Real Estate on the €863m cross border sale and leaseback with Accor, the French based European hotel group, of 72 hotels in Germany and 19 hotels in the Netherlands.
• Advising a hotel owner in connection with the terms of agreement relating to the conversion of an IHG hotel management agreement to a franchise agreement.
• Representing a hotel owner on the negotiations with Mandarin Oriental of the LOI, management, technical services and licensing arrangements for a new luxury hotel and residences.
• Advising the buyer on the acquisition of Paris Marriott Rive Gauche, a 757-room hotel and conference centre.

See our Hotels Group page for more information.

• Advising KERB on the joint venture with a family office to fund the KERB Seven Dials Food Market, as well as on their agreement with Camden market for the management and curation of the market's street food market.

• Advising Minor International (MINT) on the acquisitions of Corbin & King, Benihana and Scomadi.

• Representing pub companies, restaurants and franchises on various interchange fee claims, including currently advising over 700 franchisees of the Subway fast food chain.
• Advising Busaba Eathai on its restaurant franchising arrangements in the Middle East and on brand protection matters.
• Advising on the launch of MNKY HSE, the acclaimed new high-end Latin American restaurant and bar multi-concept, including the structuring of the company's assets and its trade mark protection strategy in the US and UAE, among other territories.
• Advising a listed operator of food and beverage outlets and restaurants in train stations and motorway locations around the world on their franchising of owned brands into the Middle East.
• Acting on the master franchise arrangements for Telepizza outlets in London.
• Representing landlord Trophaeum in relation to a number of restaurant and hospitality lettings including: Oswald's, the new private members club from Robin Birley in Albemarle Street, Mayfair; a private members club for Gleneagles in Mayfair's Grafton Street; and The Ivy Café, St John's Wood.
• Advising D&D London on the agreement for lease for a new rooftop restaurant on the 14th floor of the 120 Fenchurch Street development, beneath a public sky garden.
• Acting for the owners of an iconic London ice rink and bowling alley on the contractual arrangements and negotiations for the Meat Liquor burger chain to open and operate within it.
• Advising Sunshine Capital on the acquisition of the Coal Bar & Grill chain from Beringea, Octopus and management.
• Acting for Capco (now known as Shaftesbury Capital) on a lease to a well-known restaurant chain.
• Acting for a high end French patisserie tenant on the acquisition of their flagship store in Covent Garden.
• Advising the owners of a well-known nightclub on the franchising of their nightclub concept in Milan, India and Brazil.
• Acting for Novikov Restaurant Group on its lease of 50 Berkeley Street in Mayfair, Russian restaurateur Arkady Novikov's first foray into the London restaurant scene.

• Advising Leon Restaurants on a joint venture, as well as on brand arrangements.

• Advising Pizza Union with respect to corporate matters.

• Acting for the owners of the Soho Gyms Group on the sale to PureGym, which plans to convert the Soho Gyms sites into the PureGym format through a rolling refurbishment programme.
• Acting for Piper PE in respect of its investment in fashionable fitness studio, Frame.
• Advising Triyoga, a multi-site chain of studios for yoga and pilates classes, on a growth capital investment led by Argyll Partners.
• Acting for Encore Capital with respect their investment in Third Space Gyms.
• Acting for Third Space Gyms on corporate and IP matters.
• Advising Boom Cycle on its fundraisings and on the acquisition of boutique spin studio CycleBeat.
• Representing Gymbox on its programme of new gym openings.
• Advising luxury sportswear brand Lucas Hugh on a $2.5 million incoming investment by Hold it all Inc.

Commercial and Regulatory

• International Cruise and Excursions: Advising on terms and conditions for 12 different European States and on regulatory issues surrounding the sale of package holidays in each of those countries.
• The Travel Corporation: Advising on agency terms of business.
• Southall Travel: Advising on issues surrounding insolvency of Jet Airways.
• AP Touring: Advising on GDPR, website terms and conditions, litigation matters and potential acquisitions.
• ABTA: Advising on posted and agency workers, the effects of Brexit and WTO rules.
• Africa Exclusive: Advising on COVID 19 issues
• Nordic Tourism Collective: Establishing a new not for profit entity to promote tourism in the Nordic Region and advising on collaboration with ETOA.
• Mustique Company: Advising on travel and aviation regulatory issues as well as commercial contracts.
• Affinion International (trading as CX Loyalty): Advising on booking terms and conditions and the application of UK and Irish travel regulations.
• European Tour Operators Association (“ETOA”): Advising on venue and event contracts and providing legal advice hotline to members.

Corporate

• Hillgate Travel: Advising on the management buyout of Hillgate Travel being acquired by Inflexion backed by Reed and Mackay.
• Direct Ferries: Advising the management of the world’s largest online ferry ticket aggregator, on the buyout backed by LivingBridge.
• Golfbreaks: Acting for this market leader in golf travel, on the purchase of Xclusive golf, a high end golf trips provider, owned by Sarah Stirk of Sky Sports fame.
• On The Go Tours: Advising the founders on the management buyout backed by Alcuin Capital.
• Simpleview: Acting for Simpleview, a portfolio company of a US private equity firm (the Jordan Company), on the acquisition of the Tourism Media Group.
• Ink Global: Advising the management team on its equity arrangements following a secondary buy-out backed by the Stagwell Group.
• Airbetter: Advising start up business on operating an Airbnb style business model.
• EnterAir: Advising on potential acquisition of Monarch Airlines assets.
• Inspiring Vacations: Advising on establishing corporate entities in UK and Canada.
• Cineworld: Advising on its acquisition of five cinemas from Empire and the sale to Empire of the Cineworld Haymarket cinema.