Little Chef outsources operations and marketing as it closes headquarters

The roadside restaurant chain, owned by RCapital, has appointed LT Management Services, provider of management services to companies in the hospitality sector, to provide full operational and office support as it looks to rebuild its business. 

The move coincides with the closure of its current headquarters in Sheffield, leading to the loss of up to 20 jobs and the appointment of agency Parker Hobart to provide the company's PR and marketing. 

Sims, who oversaw the closure of 67 Little Chef sites at the beginning of the year​, said: “The appointment of LT Management Services is part of a wider plan to return Little Chef to where it rightly deserves to be as a brand and as a business. From an operational point of view their unrivalled multi-site experience will prove invaluable to Little Chef going forward.”

LT Management Services, a subsidiary of LT Pub Management PLC, is led by chief executive Billy Buchanan. He said: “We are naturally very pleased to have been appointed by Little Chef to provide field operational support and full back office support to the business. We look forward to working with everyone in the Little Chef business, assisting them in achieving their goals.”

Former glory​

Little Chef's Sheffield headquarters closure, announced last week, is part of major restructuring plans for the business. 

In a statement Little Chef said redundancies were likely from the move, although existing employees would be offered similar roles in the company or retained in regional roles if possible. 

"Although it is not possible to say definitively until the head office consultation has been completed, we currently estimate that the total number of redundancies at Little Chef's head office will be less than 20," it said. 

"The head office move and operational reorganisation will have a positive effect on the restaurants with upgraded IT, marketing, site support and back office systems."

Parker Hobart’s role will be to help restore the iconic brand to its former glory. The role will combine consumer PR with marketing support as the business approaches the key summer trading period.

Sims said the appointment of Parker Hobart was part of a 'much bigger plan' to return Little Chef 'to where it rightly deserves to be as a brand and as a business'.

Parker Hobart managing director Sarah Harding added: “Little Chef is a truly iconic brand that has a wealth of brand equity to trade off. We fully understand its recent history and we’re pleased to be working with a new management team with impressive credentials in this specific sector as well as proud to be working with a brand that has rightly earned its place as a British institution.”