GAINES TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — The company that owns Logan’s Roadhouse and Old Chicago has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
CraftWorks Holdings, LLC filed the request in a federal court in Delaware Tuesday. The Nashville-based company is asking the court to sign off on an agreement to sell its assets to Fortress Credit Co. LLC.
CraftWorks says the move would reduce its debt by more than 60%, or $140 million, and free up funding for future investment. As part of the deal, Fortress would give CraftWorks $23 million in financing to support operations during the bankruptcy process.
CraftWorks and its affiliates own 261 restaurants nationwide and franchise another 77 locations. Their brands include Logan’s Roadhouse, Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom, Gordon Biersch and Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery.
Logan’s Roadhouse has six locations in West Michigan: Portage, Holland Township, Gaines Township, Grandville, Norton Shores and Walker. Kentwood is home to the lone Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom in the area.
CraftWorks says despite the restructuring, it will be business as usual at its restaurants and franchisees, with CraftWorks planning to continue to pay its more than 18,000 employees, honor gift cards and loyalty programs and pay vendors during the process.
CraftWorks says it recently shuttered 37 “underperforming” restaurants, but has not yet responded to News 8’s inquiries about where they were located. The company says it also updated its menus and rolled out a better guest service platform to improve efficiency.
“We are now looking forward to completing an expedited process that we are confident puts our business on solid financial footing for the future,” CraftWorks Holdings CEO Hazem Ouf stated in a Tuesday news release.
