An Italian wine bar and restaurant chain with multiple branches across the UK has become the latest to fall victim to the ongoing business and high street crisis. Veeno Bars, established in Manchester in 2013 to bring the authentic Italian "Aperitivo" culture to the UK, appointed administrators on Wednesday (April 8), according to a notice published on the London Gazette website on Monday (April 13).

Renowned for its Sicilian roots and platters of meats and cheeses, Veeno operates sites in major cities including Leeds, Edinburgh, Bristol and Leicester but is now fighting for survival. According to the Gazette, the UK's official public record, David Kemp and Richard Hunt of Exigen Group Limited were appointed as joint administrators for Vintage Corporation Ltd, Veeno's legal operating company. Their aim now is to protect the company and rescue the business by providing some breathing space to restructure, sell the business, or ensure a better return for creditors than immediate liquidation.

Veeno was established in 2013 by two Italian entrepreneurs, Nino Pane and Andrea Zecchino, with the brand serving wines produced at their family vineyard, Caruso & Minini, in Marsala, Sicily, allowing the bars to offer a unique selection of wines not typically found in standard retail or hospitality outlets.

The chain now operates across five major UK cities - in Bristol, Durham, Edinburgh, Leeds and Leicester, as well as one in Wroclaw, Poland. Its flagship branch in Manchester city centre closed its doors permanently in August 2022. Its branch in Chester was confirmed to have permanently closed on February 25, 2026.

This latest rescue deal follows a similar "pre-pack" administration back in 2019, having been believed to have fallen foul of the slump in the casual dining sector at the time. After a week of limbo, Rodrigue Trouillet bought out the businesses, who joined as a new partner at the end of 2018. The buyout saved around 70 jobs.

Julie Palmer, joint-administrator at Begbies Traynor, which handled the sale at the time, said: "The restaurant and bar sector in the UK continues to display signs of distress with the adverse effects of the economy on discretionary spend making it difficult to sustain profitable operations.

"That said, where there is a unique offering and customer experience, as is the case with Veeno, it is hoped that the restructuring that the business has undergone will allow it to prosper going forwards."

Before Vintage Corporation Ltd was incorporated in 2023, the brand had already lived through two distinct corporate identities. According to Companies House, the startup company was founded as Veeno Ltd in 2013, before collapsing into administration in early 2019. Following the first collapse, Veeno Holdings Ltd was used by investor Rodrigue Trouillet to buy the brand back. Then, in 2023, Vintage Corporation Ltd was launched to manage the modern iteration of the brand, overseeing the current portfolio of bars, until it too entered administration on April 8, prompting the current rescue efforts.

The Express has contacted Veeno Bars for comment.