Closure
In this section, we report on restaurant, pub, bar, café, and catering business closures across the UK, and the commercial, operational, and market factors behind them. From high-street exits and group-wide restructures to insolvencies, lease surrenders, and strategic site rationalisations, we cover the real-world impacts of rising costs, labour shortages, shifting demand, and margin pressures. We go beyond headlines to explain why closures are happening and what they mean for the wider sector. Whether you’re benchmarking performance or navigating tough decisions, we provide the context hospitality professionals need to stay informed.
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Aug- 2020 -19 AugustRestaurants
Pizza Express to close 73 sites, 1,100 jobs at risk
Pizza Express has formally launched a CVA in a bid to reduce its restaurant estate and rental cost base following the pandemic. The CVA proposal will see the permanent closure of 73 restaurants, resulting in a loss of 1,100 jobs. The casual dining chain first announced it had reached an…
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18 AugustUncategorized
CBILS – Why it’s important to the hospitality sector and how it could help you
The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, delivered through 60+ British Business Bank accredited lenders, is designed to support the continued provision of finance to UK smaller businesses (SMEs) during the COVID-19 outbreak. The scheme enables lenders to provide facilities of up to £5m to smaller businesses across the UK who…
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18 AugustComment
Take me home – The future of the food industry
For better or worse, whether it be multi-channel cable television, police sirens or chlorinated chicken, the UK will always lag behind the US, and then eventually catch up. Right now, the Covid-19 pandemic has joined forces with the tech revolution (and our peculiar national obsession with copying the Americans) to…
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17 AugustRestaurants
Tea at the Ritz diners targeted by credit card scammers
Scammers have targeted guests of Tea at the Ritz, the Ritz Hotel’s iconic dining venue, after posing as staff in order to steal card payment information over the phone. According to the BBC, the scammers, who had the guest’s exact booking information, called diners to confirm their card details. They…
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17 AugustRestaurants
Yo Sushi to axe 250 jobs following CVA
Yo Sushi has announced it will shutter 19 sites and axe 250 jobs in a bid to restructure the business following the crisis. The move comes after the dining group launched a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in light of “changes in consumer behaviour” that have made its rents “unsustainable” across…
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13 AugustBreweries and Distilleries
SIBA backs reverse tax rise petition
A petition launched earlier this week, which calls on the government to reverse the proposed tax rise for small independent breweries, has received over 7,000 signatures in its first 24 hours. The petition was launched by Jack Hobday, one of the founders of Anspach and Hobday Brewery in Bermondsey, which…
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10 AugustCoronavirus
How important is post-closure maintenance?
Earlier this month, pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants across the UK began welcoming customers for the first time since the lockdown began in March. However, restrictions such as limited capacities, mandatory contactless payments and protection screens make going out to eat or meeting your friends for a quick pint a…
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7 AugustPubs and Bars
No trade-off needed between pubs and schools, says BBPA
The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) has refuted claims that a trade-off is needed between pubs and schools, to enable schools to reopen in September. The trade association has said that the government has made it clear it does not need to nationally close pubs to reopen schools, but…
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6 AugustRestaurants
Yo Sushi eyes CVA
Yo Sushi has reportedly drafted in Deloitte in a bid to negotiate rent concessions with landlords and secure a potential CVA, Sky News has reported. While the sushi chain has not yet made a formal decision to proceed with a CVA, sources told Sky that the group would have “little…
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4 AugustRestaurants
Pizza Express closes 67 sites
Pizza Express has announced that it could close up to 67 restaurants as part of a major restructuring plan, placing 1,100 jobs at risk. It comes as the group said it has reached an agreement with its secured creditors and majority shareholder, Hony Capital, for a recapitalisation and restructuring transaction…
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