G-A-Y founder regains company from HMV

The founder of the G-A-Y franchise, Jeremy Joseph, has revealed that he has put his own home on the line to regain control of his business, which includes the original clubbing brand, the G-A-Y labelled bars and London venue Heaven. HMV was a major shareholder in the G-A-Y company as a result of its 2010 acquisition of the MAMA Group and HMV’s administration last week meant that Joseph needed to get a deal done quickly to buy back his profitable company - Joseph says he was forced to withdraw money from his own bank account to keep G-A-Y operating last weekend. Joseph now has a loan from Metro Bank secured on his own home and other business interests.