One bingo hall door opens and another bingo hall door closes.
Last week I reported on the exciting new Club3000 venue which opened its doors in Blackpool, but this week it’s back to bad news, sadly.
Majestic Bingo, one of the most recognisable independent bingo operators in the country, has been left with no choice but to enter administration.
This is tragic news for the industry as Majestic operate 8 clubs, not to mention employing 143 people at those clubs, so all of their futures are now in doubt too.
Even crueller is the fact that Majestic were one of the companies that invested in the bingo industry back when its fortunes were just starting to turn around; they bought their clubs in 2014 and breathed new life into them, keeping the bingo industry thriving in those areas.
Here’s what is going on with Majestic at the moment.
What Happened to Majestic Bingo?
Although the company was doing fine before COVID hit, they understandably struggled during lockdown, and many of the players who were unable to attend didn’t return once things opened up again.
This in itself might have been a storm the company could weather, but their bingo hall in Spalding was badly damaged by an electrical fire which caused it to close down never to re-open, cutting income further.
Add to that a cost of living crisis keeping people’s purse strings pulled ever tighter, and the load became too much to bear for Majestic Bingo, who simply no longer had the cash flow to keep going.
As a last resort, and with no other options left, the directors of the company had to enter voluntary administration.
The clubs affected are:
- Apollo Caernarfon in Gwynedd
- Apollo Camborne in Cornwall
- Apollo Rhyl in Denbighshire
- The Globe in Donnington
- The Hippodrome in Bishop Auckland
- Judges in Tonypandy
- The Majestic in Worcester
- Roman Bank in Skegness
The Spalding club that was destroyed by fire in 2021 isn’t on the list because it’s still closed, but it is still owned by Majestic and is even where they had their head office.
The Majestic Bingo website is actually a separate entity, so although the brand is owned by the same company, the online side is not in any financial trouble, so customers of the website don’t need to fret.
Looking for Buyers
While the operator is certainly in trouble, it’s not yet the final curtain for Majestic, but they do need saving.
Should someone come forward and want to buy the business – at a discounted price too what with the situation – then so long as they were prepared to invest in it, Majestic could be saved.
As of the 7th of July, Tim Bateson and Chris Pole are running the business as joint administrators on behalf of Interpath Advisory.
The venues will continue to run while the word spreads that Majestic is up for sale.
“We will continue to trade the business in the immediate term while we seek a buyer for the business. We would encourage any interested parties to make contact with us as soon as possible.”
So it really is an end of the movie moment, in which a bingo loving hero needs to appear from the smoke, waving their cheque book and fighting off those evil debts.
I’m not making light of the situation here, the loss of 8 clubs would be a tragedy, especially in Wales where 3 of the 8 are located, but I’m hopeful that someone with a stronger bank balance will see the value in these clubs and step in to save the day.