The Italian restaurant announced today (Monday, April 24) that around 810 workers in total across the UK are at risk of redundancy due to major news
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Two Italian Prezzo restaurant franchisees are set to close in Hertfordshire as part of 46 loss-making restaurants due to sky-high energy and food costs, it has been announced. The Italian restaurant announced on Monday (April 24) that around 810 workers are at risk of redundancy due to the closures.
The Prezzo restaurants that will be shut are located in Borehamwood and Harpenden. The Borehamwood restaurant is located on 63 Shenley Road, while the Harpenden franchisee is situated on 15 Leyton Road. The private equity-owned company bosses stated that the cuts will impact restaurants where the post-Covid recovery has "proved harder than we had hoped".
The restaurant cuts – which are part of a broader strategic review – will leave the hospitality chain with 97 restaurants and around 2,000 members of staff. It said the closures will impact some high street sites as its portfolio shifts more towards those "in better locations to cater to changing consumer habits", including shopping centres, retail parks and tourist destinations.
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Staff were informed about the closures on Monday morning, with a consultation process launched. Prezzo said it will work to re-deploy "as many staff internally as possible" and will help others in new opportunities.
The Italian restaurant group said costs have soared in the past year, with utility bills more than doubling and double-digit wage inflation. It has also been affected by high-flying food inflation, which hit a 45-year high last month, with Prezzo witnessing a 40 per cent jump in the cost of spaghetti, 28 per cent surge for pizza sauce and 15 per cent increase in the cost of its dough balls.
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. 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."
This comes as the Italian restaurant company dropped into administration in late-2020 following the stark impact of the pandemic, before they were purchased by current private equity owners Cain International. This closure plan comes two-years after the group previously shut 22 restaurants and cut 216 jobs. The full list of Prezzo restaurants shutting down includes:
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