Blackburn’s billionaire Issa brothers have today acquired the healthy fast food chain LEON for reportedly close to £100 million.
Just months after making a record-breaking £6.8 billion deal to purchase supermarket chain ASDA from US shopping giant Walmart, 70 LEON restaurants across the UK and Europe have now been sold to Mohsin and Zuber Issa to form part of their giant petrol forecourt business EG Group.
EG Group said that the acquisition is “complementary” as it seeks to expand the food side of its business, and has plans to open around 20 additional LEON sites a year from 2022.
The deal includes 42 company-owned restaurants, as well as 29 franchise sites, which are mainly found in airports and train stations across the UK – including a Manchester branch based in Manchester Piccadilly station – and a handful of European countries, such as the Netherlands and Spain.
EG Group has also committed to keeping on LEON’s management team and staff.
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EG Group is pleased to announce that it has acquired LEON Restaurants Limited, a prominent British fresh fast food restaurant chain. #EGGrouppic.twitter.com/AatDmQmtAR
Speaking about the acquisition of LEON in a joint statement, the Issa brothers said: “Leon is a fantastic brand that we have long admired.
“As established entrepreneurs in the food service retail market ourselves, we have a huge admiration for the business that John and the Leon team have built over the years, and firmly believe that their culture and values closely align with our own.”
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Mohsin and Zuber Issa started out life as entrepreneurs in a garage, which their dad – who had worked in a woollen mill – bought, before branching out on their own by first renting a petrol station for two years, then buying their first forecourt – a derelict freehold site in Bury in 2001 – and forming Euro Garages.
The EG Group now has almost 6,000 sites across 10 countries, from the UK to the US and Australia.
It runs outlets for Greggs, Starbucks and KFC, and employs 44,000 people.
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EG Groupd / Issa Brothers
LEON was founded in London in 2004 by John Vincent, Henry Dimbleby and Allegra McEvedy, with an importance placed on creating a menu of “healthy fast-food”.
Mr Vincent said that “in some ways this is a sad day for me, to part company with the business I founded 17 years ago in Carnaby Street”, but admitted he was “confident under the new ownership”.
He added that he has “had the pleasure of getting to know Mohsin and Zuber [Issa]” over the last few years.
“They have been enthusiastic customers of LEON, going out of their way to eat here whenever they visit London. They are decent, hard-working business people who are committed to sustaining and further strengthening the values and culture that we have built”.
Mr Vincent also said he is keen to watch the the brand “flourish and have even greater appeal to a broader customer base, especially outside of London”.
Featured Image – LEON
Business
Chester Zoo named best zoo in the UK thanks to more than 11,000 ‘excellent’ ratings
Emily Sergeant
It’s official… Chester Zoo has been named to best zoo in the UK for 2024.
Everyone in and around Greater Manchester and the North West is familiar with just how brilliant the UK’s biggest charity zoo is and all the work it contributes towards conservation and protecting endangered species all across the world – but now, it’s got itself a respectable new title to prove it, and it’s all thanks to tens of thousands of positive TripAdvisor reviews.
The world’s biggest travel guidance platform has named Chester Zoo as the best-rated zoo to visit in the UK this year, with more than 11,000 ‘Excellent’ ratings.
Based on millions of online reviews, the new ranking puts the beloved Cheshire-based attraction ahead of the country’s other zoos after earning consistently good feedback from its visitors.
Chester Zoo has been named the best zoo in the UK for 2024 / Credit: Chester Zoo
According to Chester Zoo, the “wonderful news” means that, as a conservation charity, it can continue its work with countries across the world to “help all animals survive and thrive”, as well as provide expert care to the 37,000 animals who currently call the zoo their home.
The zoo has also thanked its visitors for all their continued support each year, as this allows to “keep making a difference”.
“With every admission ticket, membership, animal adoption, or experience purchased, you are contributing to our mission of preventing extinction,” Chester Zoo said in a statement.
We've been named the BEST zoo in the UK, thanks to YOU! 🇬🇧
This news comes after receiving thousands of positive reviews on the travel website, Tripadvisor 🙌
Your support helps us to protect more than 500 of the world's most threatened animal and plant species🐅🌱
Speaking on the coveted new TripAdvisor title, Jamie Chirston, who is the CEO at Chester Zoo, says he’s “over the moon to be named the best zoo in the UK”, adding in a statement that: “It’s an incredible achievement and especially pleasing given it’s based on thousands upon thousands of genuine reviews and opinions.
“It’s a real seal of approval from our visitors, and testament to every single one of our dedicated, hardworking, and talented staff that make our conservation zoo the wonderful place it is.
“Every time someone walks through our gates, not only do they enjoy all kinds of wildlife experiences and a have great day out, but they’re also contributing to the vital conservation work we carry out here and around the world, and that’s why, as a not-for-profit conservation zoo, this top TripAdvisor ranking means such an awful lot to us.
It’s all thanks to more than 11,000 ‘Excellent’ ratings by visitors on TripAdvisor / Credit: Chester Zoo
“It’s confirmation that we’re getting things right for our visitors, [which is] especially important as, together, we’re preventing extinction and making a real difference for wildlife.”
The UK’s best zoo isn’t the only title Chester Zoo has claimed this month either, as TripAdvisor has also listed it as the eighth-best zoo or aquarium to visit in the whole of Europe too.
So it double congratulations are in order – and they couldn’t be more well-deserved, right?
Featured Image – Chester Zoo
Business
‘Not just for mums’ – Iceland drops iconic slogan after more than 50 years
Emily Sergeant
Iceland has dropped its iconic slogan after more than 50 years, and has finally admitted that it’s “not just for mums”.
We all know that “that’s why mums go to Iceland” is one of the most famous slogans in British retail history… but, as of last week, more than 50 years since it was first uttered on TV, Iceland has decided to say farewell to the iconic phrase.
The headline-grabbing move is thought to be the supermarket‘s bid to become more inclusive, as it has cited the decades-old tagline as “outdated”.
Iceland’s first use of ‘mum’ in its’ marketing campaigns was all the way back in 1970 with the phrase “Mums love it”, before it was slightly changed to “Mum’s gone to Iceland” in 1988 ahead of its expansion into Europe in 1991.
Iceland has dropped its iconic slogan after more than 50 years / Credit: Iceland Foods
Then finally, in 2004, the frozen food retailer introduced its now most-iconic strapline, “So that’s why mums go to Iceland”, to coincide with introducing celebrity pop star Kerry Katona as the new face of its TV advertisements.
But now, as part of its latest advertising campaign, the world ‘mum’ has been dropped once and for all in favour of the altered tagline “That’s why we go to Iceland.
Explaining its decision to part way with its use of ‘mums’, Iceland’s Executive Chairman Richard Walker commented: “Iceland’s always been number one with mums, but the reality is, people from all walks of life, and life stage, choose to shop with us. That includes everyone from students and seniors, to single-parent families, mums, dads, and fitness enthusiasts.
“We’re a Great British institution, and open to all.”
Alongside the new slogan, Iceland is continuing its tradition of appointing celebrity mums as the face of the company.
TV presenter Josie Gibson has landed the role of the supermarket’s new ambassador.
“With her famous warmth and positivity, Josie is the perfect person to encapsulate the friendly welcome all our customers receive at Iceland,” Mr Walker continued, adding that the retailer is “delighted to have her onboard”.
The Manc -
19th April 2021 
