PizzaExpress To Close 73 UK Outlets

PizzaExpress has decided to close 73 of its 449 UK restaurants due to coronavirus lockdowns and higher costs.

1,100 jobs will be impacted by the closures.

The company said that rental costs have become unsustainable, and launched a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) to improve its finances by cutting rental agreements and temporarily moving from quarterly to monthly rents.

"Hard as this process is, it will protect the jobs of over 9,000 of our colleagues," Zoe Bowley, the company's UK and Ireland managing director, said in a statement.

PizzaExpress said that it will seek approval for the CVA proposals from its creditors on September 4.

The group had said earlier this month that 166 of its restaurants had reopened and that further reopenings were under way.

Debt-For-Equity Swap

Earlier this month, Chinese buyout firm Hony Capital decided to cease control of PizzaExpress to creditors in a debt-for-equity swap. Hony Capital bought PizzaExpress for £900 million in 2014.

News by Reuters, edited by Hospitality Ireland. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.