Closure
In this section, we report on restaurant, pub, bar, cafรฉ, 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 -21 AugustRestaurants
Franco Manca owner reports August sales boost amid EOTHO scheme
Franco Manca owner, Fulham Shore, has said the UK Governmentโs Eat Out to Help Out (EOTHO) scheme has proved to be beneficial both for the company and UK diners after reporting a boost in sales at the start of August. It said trade in the first full fortnight in August…
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21 AugustComment
GMs must be front of house to reassure customers and staff post-lockdown
The best hospitality operators definitely took a โglass half fullโ approach when lockdown was imposed and looked for the opportunities in a situation that was beyond their control, rather than railing against it. Enforced closure allowed for the reflection and review that are hard to make time for when youโre…
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19 AugustRestaurants
The Dairy and Counter Culture restaurants shutter permanently
The Dairy and Counter Culture restaurants in Clapham, London, has shuttered permanently, as the UKโs high streets continue to grapple with the Covid-19 pandemic. Announcing the news in an Instagram post, restaurateur Robert Gill said it was with โa very heavy heartโ that it was announcing the closure of the…
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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.ย The casual dining chain first announced it had reached an…
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18 AugustUncategorized
CBILS – Why itโs 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 ยฃ5m 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 Hotelโs 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 guestโs 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.ย The move comes after the dining group launched a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in light of โchanges in consumer behaviourโ that have made its rents โunsustainableโ 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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