STAFF at a Scots escape room were left stunned after they arrived at work to find it had shut down.
Escape Reality employees turned up at the firm’s Merchant Square branch in Glasgow on Friday, February 28 to discover the company was being evicted.
Staff were left stunned after arriving at work to find it had shut down[/caption]
Workers claim they were not told the firm was being kicked out and were made to hand over their keys, reports Glasgow Live.
Staff allege they were also left struggling to make ends meet after their wages were delayed due to the insolvency.
One worker said: “We had suspected it was coming because we had a lot of scary letters and phone calls demanding money. We also knew their Cardiff and Manchester branches had shut in similar circumstances.
“It is really stressful for everyone. A couple of people have mortgage payments. People are really feeling it and they are worried about the current state of the job market.
“People are really unhappy and upset. It was a great place to work. Even if the insolvency goes through it will be months until anyone sees if there is money left to pay for what is owed.”
Customers also claim Escape Reality did not offer refunds and instead requested punters book with the Edinburgh branch instead.
One wrote: “We had a booking for the Glasgow branch next week and it looks like they’ve shut down. But when we called and emailed for our refund there was no answer and that’s been over a week now.
“Called and emailed the Edinburgh location, no answer for ages on the phone, someone eventually picked up and they REFUSED to refund us.”
A second said: “We originally booked for Escape Reality Glasgow, but the owner shut it down. When we called Escape Reality Edinburgh, we were refused to get a refund or reschedule.
“From previous visits to Escape Reality Edinburgh, I know that they are the same company since staff often recommend rooms in Glasgow/Edinburgh.”
Escape Reality said they entered insolvency and reassured staff they will be paid all outstanding wages.
Bosses also say customers have been refunded.
A spokesperson added: “We want to acknowledge that the past 12 months have been incredibly difficult for our team, customers, and partners. Like many businesses in the entertainment and hospitality sector, we have faced unprecedented challenges, and we deeply regret any distress caused to former employees or customers.
“We take our obligations to employees very seriously. Our pension contributions were made in line with requirements up until the final quarter of 2024 where, there was an issue with a payment link issue with our pension provider. This was raised to us, and this was addressed, albeit slower than we would have liked, as we were not expecting that. As of this week, all our pension liabilities have already been cleared.
“As you can imagine, the last two weeks have been incredibly difficult, and we have had to make extremely difficult decisions, hence some delays.
“We have no outstanding payments. We had been in ongoing discussions regarding the lease and did everything possible to avoid this outcome. Unfortunately, due to financial pressures, the closure became unavoidable. While we understand the frustration around communication, we had hoped to manage the situation in a way that minimised impact. We are not able to comment further on our position with Merchant Square, as this conversation is part of an important legal process.
“We fully appreciate the distress that comes with uncertainty over wages and whilst communication could be better to our staff, we are actively working through the necessary legal processes and remain committed to ensuring that all financial matters are handled appropriately within the framework of insolvency proceedings.
“Our priority is to support those affected in the best way we can. While we cannot change the circumstances that have led to these difficulties, we remain committed to ensuring all staff members come out of this fairly. And that’s why we initiated insolvency proceedings.
“We believe whilst the insolvency notes that were sent out to the staff were made in a timely manner, we acknowledge that it could have been written better.
“Every single staff member will be paid their wage, redundancy and statutory payments, and that is why we had to go through this process.”
