THE PRESS UP group has rebranded and changed its name as part of a restructuring of the business. 

The hospitality group, which engaged in rapid expansion in post-recessionary Dublin, will henceforth be known as Eclective.

At its height, Press Up was estimated to own about 50 venues and employed over 1,000 staff, making it one of Ireland’s biggest hospitality companies.

Eclective said today that the company is “under new management” and “employs more than 850 people across 24 venues in Dublin”. 

Among those venues are restaurants such as Wowburger, Elephant & Castle, Captain Americas, Mama Yo and Isabelle’s. In addition, nightclub The Workman’s and The Stella Cinema remain part of the Eclective stable. 

The name change was confirmed today and is a play on the word ‘eclectic’. 

Acknowledging the made-up nature of the brand name, chief commercial officer Tristan Jacob said: “Although not a word in the dictionary, it captures the essence of our group that celebrates different experiences in unique venues for people from all walks of life.” 

Press Up was founded in 2009 by Paddy McKillen Jr and Matt Ryan, both friends from school. McKillen Jr’s father, Paddy McKillen Snr, is one of Ireland’s most prominent property developers who built up an enormous empire between the 1980s and the Celtic Tiger.

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Last year, Press Up was taken over by Cheyne Capital, a London-based asset management firm, when Press Up’s debts were acquired by Cheyne Capital in exchange for equity in the company. 

McKillen Jnr is reported to still own a 10% stake in the remaining business.

The change in ownership came after the company had struggled in the post-Covid environment. Press Up had borrowed cash to fuel its expansion and Covid put a near halt to revenue across the hospitality industry. 

The company looked to sell off some of its brands and some of them went into receivership, among them Dublin’s three Wagamama restaurants.

In December, Eclective opened a new Asian restaurant Kaldero on the site of the Wagamama restaurant on King St South beside St Stephen’s Green. 

In announcing today’s rebrand, the Eclective Hospitality Group said the new identity “signals the next stage for the group while preserving its legacy of innovation”

- With reporting by Paul O’Donoghue