Retail Food Group's Peter George says he is “very confident” the company can be turned around
The franchisor previously reported a $111.1 million half-year loss in February.
Retail Food Group (RFG) chairman Peter George says he is “very confident” the Queensland-based franchisor can be turned around.
“In other companies there’s not much you can do except cut costs,” he said in an exclusive interview with news.com.au. “This is different. There are still 17-odd million people passing through our stores every year, so despite some shortcomings in the way the business has been run in the past, those brands are still very strong.”
A turnaround specialist, George says he has been “feverishly” working to fix things for the group’s remaining franchisees and shareholders. One of the first initiatives he performed was to sack around 80% of RFG’s senior management — 200 people in total.
“I took this job on because I think this company can and should be given a chance to turn around. Over 1000 small businesses and 7000 employees depend on us getting this right,” he said.
RFG previously reported a $111.1 million half-year loss in February, up from $87.8 million in the previous period. Talks to sell off its Donut King, Crust Pizza and Pizza Capers brands in a bid to reduce some of its $260 million debt due at the end of October were unsuccessful.
