The group that owns the Burger King NZ franchise has been placed into receivership with a plan to restart and then sell the business after the lockdown ends.

Grant Graham and Brendon Gibson of KordaMentha have been appointed receivers.

Gibson said the closure of all Burger King restaurants in the country following the implementation of COVID-19 Alert Level 4 has significantly impacted the financial position of the business.

According to Gibson, the fast food chain’s parent companies plan to seek support from suppliers and landlords to restart the business once the lockdown is lifted.

Gibson said the ultimate aim of the receivership is to get the business restarted post-lockdown and then transition the business to a new owner through a sales process.

The business’ financiers and the master franchisor are providing support for this process.

The parent shareholding companies in receivership are Tango Finance Limited, Tango New Zealand Limited and Antares New Zealand Holdings Limited.

The Burger King NZ business operates 83 stores around the country and employs more than 2,600 staff.