- By Karen Hoggan
- Business reporter
Image supply, Getty Images
Pizza chain Papa Johns has mentioned it would shut nearly a tenth of its UK eating places – all of which it says are “underperforming”.
The closures comply with a overview of the enterprise which recognized sites that had been “no longer financially viable”.
The chain, which has 450 eating places plus others in service stations and vacation parks, will shut 43 sites however has not mentioned what number of jobs will likely be hit.
Separately, Revolution Bars has mentioned it may promote “all or part of the group”.
Its announcement adopted reviews that mentioned Revolution may shut about 20 bars, or a roughly a quarter of its retailers.
Announcing the Papa Johns web site closures, UK managing director Chris Phylactou mentioned: “Our precedence is our workforce members, who will likely be absolutely supported all through this course of.
“Our objective is to work with impacted workforce members and try to discover redeployment alternatives the place out there.”
The closures are all in England and lengthen from Harrogate, North Yorkshire to St Helens, Merseyside, Billericay, Essex and Eastbourne, East Sussex.
All of them had been “underperforming areas which are not financially viable”, the corporate mentioned.
While different sectors of the hospitality trade have confronted critical issues lately, takeaway retailers generally are booming, in accordance to consultancy PwC.
It mentioned final yr, a web 151 chain takeaway retailers opened.
“It’s a good sector to be in, albeit that there is a lot extra competitors as others open,” mentioned PwC senior retail adviser Kien Tan.
“There’s growing shopper demand for takeaway and for takeaway retailers. If you are buying and selling down from consuming out or going out it is extra inexpensive than going out for the night.”
Papa Johns had beforehand mentioned it deliberate “strategic closures” so as to unlock cash for funding and bettering profitability at its remaining UK sites.
It plans to broaden additional into non-traditional sites like vacation parks and the chain mentioned it could “announce different giant retail companions within the coming months”.
US-owned Papa Johns mentioned the UK was its second greatest market and it was “dedicated to driving progress within the UK and bettering outcomes over the long run”.
Revolution Bars, which additionally owns Revolucion de Cuba, mentioned that following a interval of “exterior challenges” which had hit trading it was “actively exploring all of the strategic choices out there to it to enhance the longer term prospects of the group”.
This may embody restructuring elements of the group or a sale of “all or half of” the group, it mentioned.
Revolution additionally mentioned it was speaking to “key shareholders” and different buyers about elevating additional funds.
When the corporate reported on buying and selling in January, it mentioned that the Revolution model was underperforming as a result of the associated fee of residing disaster had hit youthful individuals more durable.
Earlier this month, figures confirmed there was a rise in new stores opened final yr, dominated by espresso drive-throughs, bubble tea retailers and quick meals eating places, largely positioned exterior metropolis centres.
But in accordance to PwC, which analysed knowledge compiled by the Local Data Company, the openings weren’t sufficient to outweigh the locations the place chains, equivalent to Wilko, shut up store, and there was a web lower of 5,000 shops throughout the UK.
So far this yr, the Body Shop and evening membership chain Pryzm have already run into difficulties, saying the closure of sites.
