16/04/2025
It’s with heavy hearts that we share some tough news. Sarah and I have made the difficult decision to place Fox Friday and subsidiaries (Moonah Hotel and Cellars, Carwyn Cellars) into voluntary administration with the appointment of McGrathNicol as the administrator.
When we purchased Fox Friday in March 2019, it was just the two of us in a small factory unit located in Moonah, brewing beer during the week and running a makeshift taproom on the weekends. In late 2020, we opened our Hobart Taproom, and from there, our team grew. We added new venues and breweries, and welcomed incredibly dedicated people to the Fox Friday family. Together, we’ve built something we’re immensely proud of.
Unfortunately, we’ve faced significant financial challenges that have brought us to this point. Our financial lender could not meet their obligations for our capital projects. While funding was confirmed, we experienced continual delays extending to March 2025, and now they have been placed into liquidation. This left us covering major capital projects with operational funds, based on assurances that support was still coming.
To our valued suppliers, we sincerely apologise for the impact this situation may have caused. Your partnerships have been integral to our journey, and we deeply regret any uncertainty this brings. We tried everything we could to quickly pivot to new lenders and/or equity partners, but quite simply, time and the complex nature of the situation were not on our side.
To our incredible team: words can’t express how sorry we are. You’ve poured your hearts into these businesses, and we’re so grateful for your talent, passion, and dedication.
To our customers and community: thank you for believing in us, for sharing a beer with us, and for being part of this journey.
We’re committed to keeping it business as usual during this time, though you may notice some changes to our venues operating days and hours. While we understand that there will be some uncertainty as a result of this decision, we very much intend to come through the other side of this and we hope that Fox Friday and its subsidiaries will continue to operate well into the future. We’ll keep you updated as things progress.
With sincere thanks,
Sarah & Benn Hooper
