THE co-founder of a £10 million North Yorkshire pub and hotel group has resigned from the company taking one of the eight businesses within the group with him.

Provenance Inns co-founder and managing director Michael Ibbotson is stepping away from the business he started in 2010.

The group, which predominantly runs gastropubs across North Yorkshire, will continue to operate under the sole operator of Mr Ibbotson’s former business partner, and Provenance co-founder Chris Blundell.

Mr Ibbotson is set to remain with Provenance Inns in a consultancy role, and is working closely with Mr Blundell to appoint a replacement managing director for the group.

While Mr Ibbotson is expected to pursue other interests in hospitality, including wider consultancy work, he will also continue to own and run the Durham Ox in Crayke, which he acquired in 1999, which will now once again trade as a standalone business, independently of the Provenance Inns portfolio.

Mr Blundell said: “Michael and I have always agreed on the direction of the Provenance Inns business and, with Michael having reached his decision to resign as a director, this is no exception.

“The forward momentum of Provenance Inns will continue, with no changes to current or future projects. Michael’s continued involvement as a consultant will be invaluable.”

Mr Ibbotson added: “When Chris and I founded Provenance Inns, we set ourselves some ambitious targets, and we have acquired and opened seven businesses in just seven years, putting significant investment into each.

“Having spent 25 years in the hospitality sector, my passion for the industry is as strong as ever, and there are now other opportunities I want to pursue.

“Although I may have been the ‘face’ of Provenance Inns until now, the heart and soul of the business is the fantastic teams in the pubs and hotels, who deliver amazing customer service every day, and that will not change.”

Provenance Inns, which now has seven sites, was founded in 2010 when Mr Blundell, a former director of supermarket group Morrisons and a regular customer at the Durham Ox, went into partnership with Mr Ibbotson to build a portfolio of unique hospitality businesses across North Yorkshire. The company currently has 275 employees and a turnover of around £10 million

The seven businesses in the Provenance Inns portfolio are: the Black Bull Inn, Moulton; the Carpenters Arms, Felixkirk; the Crown & Cushion, Welburn; the Oak Tree, Helperby; the Punch Bowl, Marton cum Grafton; the West Park Hotel, Harrogate; and the Cleveland Tontine, Staddlebridge, acquired in 2016.