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BrewDog CEO James Watt has announced it is set to close six of its sites amid rising costs and has called on the government to “get a grip” and provide assistance to the sector.
In a LinkedIn post, Watt said that there has been “no prospect of any help” from the “clueless” Government to help tackle the current onslaught of rising headwinds. As a result it said the craft beer firm has been forced to close the Hop and Anchor in Aberdeen, Smithfield Market Arms in London, Hop Hub in Motherwell and its BrewDog bars in Dalston, east London; Old Street, east London; and Peterhead, Scotland.
The post cited recent data stating that predicts up to 70% of the UK’s bars, pubs and restaurants “could be forced to close due to soaring energy prices and huge cost price increases”.
Watt added it was “heart-breaking” to lose the six pubs and that the “reality in the hospitality space is starting to bite and bite hard”.
He added: “If nothing happens the UK looks set to lose half of its pubs and bars and all the millions of jobs these locations provide.”
The news comes two weeks after BrewDog opened its largest bar in London’s Waterloo station, with Watt revealing the location had received more than 20,000 visitors since launch.
