It is business as usual at Barbecues Galore Armidale despite the national chain entering receivership this week, with local owners Sam and Reece assuring customers their Rusden Street store will continue trading as normal.
Iconic Australian retailer Barbeques Galore has collapsed into receivership, with the company confirming cashflow issues forced it into voluntary administration before receivers were appointed.
Those receivers, Quentin Olde, Luke Pittorino and Liam Healey of Ankura, are now seeking to either restructure or sell the business.
The retailer operates 68 company-owned stores and 27 franchise stores throughout Australia, employing approximately 500 staff across its operations and store network.
Barbeques Galore CEO David White said management was “excited” to turn around the business and move to the next evolution of the brand when he moved into his role in 2025.
“Considerable progress has been made in recent months leading to significant improvements across the business and operations, however ongoing liquidity challenges have led to the necessary restructuring of the business,” White said.
The business and retail stores, including the franchise stores, will continue to operate as normal during the transition. The franchisees are not impacted by the appointments and restructuring process.
Sam and Reece, two mates who met at the University of New England a decade ago, took over the Armidale franchise in 2023 after working in the business for some time. Reece said they were not expecting any changes to operations for at least six months while the national situation plays out, but they are committed to the business no matter what happens.
“We’ll keep going and stick with Barbecues Galore for the moment, but we have spoken about a rebrand,” Reece said.
“They’re pretty good as a franchise to deal with.”
Barbecues Galore brands include Ziggy, Beefmaster and Turbo, but Reece said the store sources stock from a range of suppliers, and they can replace the Barbecues Galore lines if the need arises.
Under the receivership arrangements, in-store and online orders that have been paid for in part or in full will be honoured in the ordinary course unless stock is unavailable. The company has also confirmed it will continue to accept gift cards, with some new spend conditions applying.
Receiver Quentin Olde said Barbeques Galore would continue normal operations while options are assessed.
“Barbeques Galore is an iconic Australian business and operates a successful national retail network selling premium products,” Olde said.
“The business will continue to trade as normal under the control of the receivers with the guidance of David White and the Barbeques Galore team while we assess options for its future.”
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