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Here's the latest on which Frankie and Benny's restaurants are closing in the UK in 2023.
March 2023 brings with it more news of closures on the horizon, with hospitality company The Restaurant Group announcing plans to shut down a number of Frankie and Benny's restaurants across the UK. It's certainly sad news for fans of the American-Italian dining chain, with many holding fond memories of birthday parties and post-Cinema meals at one of the pizza and pasta joints.
It's not the only drink and dining restaurant that will be shutting doors this year with Italian chain Prezzo announcing closures, Wetherspoon pub closures expected too and rumours of Wagamama restaurants shutting down. But for now, we share which Frankie and Benny's restaurants are at risk of closing down and the reasons behind the decision.
The Italian dining chain is owned by The Restaurant Group, which also owns popular hospitality brands Wagamama and Chiquito. After announcing a pre-tax loss this week, the company confirmed that 35 of it's restaurants will be set to close.
The Restaurant Group have confirmed that no Wagamama restaurants will close, instead brands affected by the closures include Frankie and Benny's and Chiquito.
There are 85 Frankie and Benny's restaurants currently across the UK. The hospitality company have not confirmed which restaurants will close and when, but it has shared plans to close sites that are currently making a loss.
The Restaurant Group, which altogether owns about 410 restaurants, said it would reduce its estate by 30% by next year. This is set to affect some of the 18,000 people in the UK employed by the business.
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The Restaurant Group has blamed rising running costs and customers cutting back spending during the current cost of living crisis as reasons for closing some Frankie and Benny's restaurants.
According to the BBC, investors have been putting the pressure on company management to make changes after the company's share value fell by two-thirds last year.
In March 2023, the company recorded a pre-tax loss for 2022 of £86.8 million. This loss was greater than the £35.2 million pre-tax loss reported in 2021. Despite this, sales increased overall to £883 million in 2022.
Ken Hanna, the group's chairman, said that last year was particularly "challenging" for the dining sector overall, as businesses had to meet rising costs after recouping from losses as a result of closures during the pandemic.
He added that a lack of staff, demand for higher wages and the price of ingredients going up had also been "tough" and that their restaurants had been "impacted to some degree by the cost-of-living pressures on the UK consumer".
It's not the first time the UK has seen Frankie and Benny's restaurants shut down. In 2021, The Restaurant Group announced plans to close 250 sites which affected Frankie & Benny's, Chiquito and their Food & Fuel brands.
Frankie and Benny's restaurants that closed following the 2021 announcement included their Bromborough, Derby and Weston-Super-Mare locations. Meanwhile sites in Wandsworth and Colliers Wood similarly shut in 2020.
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