Take five: Granny Annies snaps up Wetherspoon NI outlets

Burgeoning local pub chain, Granny Annies, has snapped up five outlets in Northern Ireland from UK hospitality giant, JD Wetherspoon.

The group, which is owned Limavady brothers, Willis and Ryan McLaughlin, has taken on The Old Courthouse in Coleraine; The Spinning Mill in Ballymena; The Linen Hall in Enniskillen and two further bars in Londonderry.

Wetherspoon’s has held on to the remaining four outlets in its NI portfolio.

There has been no official confirmation of the amount that Granny Annies paid for the bars, but the figure is thought to be in excess of £3m.

Wetherspoon’s is led by Tim Martin, who went to school in Northern Ireland, and he said following the announcement that there would be no job losses as a result of the deal.

“We understand that our loyal customers will be disappointed by our decision to sell five of our pubs in Northern Ireland. However, as a company, we have to make commercial decisions and it was decided to sell the pubs,” he said recently.

Wetherspoons will continue to run its pubs in Belfast, Newtownards, Carrickfergus and Lisburn and aims to open two further bars in Belfast – one at the former JJB Sports outlet in Royal Avenue and the other at a former Methodist Church on University Road. It has said that it will spend £4.5m on these two developments and create 100 new jobs. It also intends to develop a beer garden at The Bridge House in Belfast

Our picture shows Wetherspoon chairman, Tim Martin outside The Bridge House in Belfast.