Plymouth’s BrewDog faces immediate closure after 38 bars shut nationwide

A well-known Plymouth bar has announced its closure “with immediate effect” after its parent company was sold following a period in administration.

BrewDog’s Plymouth venue is one of 38 sites across the UK that have shut, including in fellow Devon city Exeter, after the company entered administration and was subsequently sold to US-based Tilray Brands in a £33 million acquisition.

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The bar opened in 2020 as part of The Barcode leisure and entertainment development next to Drake Circus in Plymouth city centre. 

BrewDog, founded in Scotland in 2007, expanded into the Devon city with a large craft beer venue offering multiple taps, food and drink.

Like many BrewDog bars, the Plymouth site took part in national student-focused promotions. 

The chain offered 25% off food and drink for students with a valid student ID, alongside other offers including discounts for under-25s through promotional partners.

Administrators AlixPartners confirmed the nationwide closures and sale in a statement.

“As one would expect over the past two weeks, we have received significant interest in the BrewDog business from prospective buyers across both the trade and investment communities,” they said.

“In Tilray, we have secured a purchaser with a passion for craft brewing who will be an excellent custodian and sponsor of the business in the months and years ahead.”

AlixPartners added that their priority is to support those affected by redundancies, stating: “Having done so, our priority now is to support, to the fullest extent possible, those people whose roles have been made redundant, and we would ask operators within the UK leisure sector who are in a position to assist to contact us at any time.”

The closures have resulted in approximately 484 job losses, while 733 roles were preserved through the transfer of staff at retained venues under TUPE arrangements.

Tilray Brands has acquired the BrewDog brand, related intellectual property and UK brewing operations as part of the deal.

The US-based company operates in the medicinal cannabis, pharmaceutical and beverage sectors, and owns a portfolio of craft beer brands in North America.

Tilray Brands chief executive Irwin D Simon said: “BrewDog is one of the most iconic, mission-driven craft beer brands in the UK.

“As we begin a new chapter for this great brand, our priority is to refocus BrewDog on the craft beer excellence that made it beloved in the first place and strategically invest to return the operations to profitable growth.”