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Prezzo to shut 46 restaurants putting 810 staff at risk

By Nagasunder in UK Business News, posted April 25, 2023

Prezzo will close 46 loss-making outlets as a result of rising energy and food prices, which means 810 staff are in danger of losing their jobs.

The Italian restaurant chain says it will try to redeploy "as many staff internally as possible."

The changes hit areas of the UK where "the post-COVID recovery has proven harder than we had hoped," according to the private equity-owned company.

The closures will leave the chain with 97 restaurants and around 2,000 employees.

Dean Challenger, chief executive of Prezzo, said: "The last three years have been some of the hardest times I have ever seen for the high street and I'm extremely proud of the way our colleagues have retained Prezzo's position as an appealing, trusted, great value food and drink experience.

"But the reality is that the cost of living crisis, the changing face of the high street and soaring inflation has made it impossible to keep all our restaurants operating profitably."

The restaurant chain reported its power bills had more than doubled and that the cost of food had reached a 45-year high last month.

It has seen the price of spaghetti climb by 40 percent, pizza sauce rise by 28 percent, and dough balls rise by 15 percent.

Mr. Challenger said: "We believe the tough decisions we are making today will ensure Prezzo can continue serving communities with high-quality, accessible Italian-inspired meals for many more years to come,"

The move comes just two years after the company closed 22 outlets and laid off 216 people.

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Prezzo even went into administration in late 2020 before being purchased by Cain International, a private equity firm.

The Prezzo restaurants due to close:

Beccles, Billericay, Bolton, Borehamwood, Boston, Bracknell, Brentwood, Buckhurst Hill, Buckingham, Chichester, Chingford, Colchester, Corby, Didcot, Eastbourne, Egham, Eltham, Ely, Epsom, Fleet, Glasgow, St Vincent Place, Hailsham, Harpenden, Livingston, Lyndhurst, Maidstone, Mere Green, Mill Hill, Oxford, Plymouth, Redditch, Redhill, Rugby, Shepperton, Shirley, Sidcup, St Neots, Stowmarket, Tenterden, Tunbridge Wells, Weybridge, Whitstable, Wickford, Wimborne, Winchester, Woodford Green.

Source: Sky News