Wetherspoons shuts two more pubs as DOZENS of boozers across Britain are earmarked for closure
Wetherspoons has closed two pubs for good, while dozens of other alcoholics remain in the line of fire.
Hove’s The Cliftonville, in East Sussex, Southport’s The Willow Grove, in Merseyside, were the last sites to be delisted, closing on Sundays.
The closures come ahead of the closing of The Sir John Stirling Maxwell in Glasgow, which pours its last pint on March 26.
Meanwhile, dozens of other Wetherspoons sites are still at risk of being taken down across the country, marking another blow to the UK’s pub trade.
The sites are at risk are currently for sale. But if no buyer is found, they will be packed up for good.
The Willow Grove in Southport, in Merseyside, was one of the last sites to be delisted, closing on Sunday
The Cliftonville, in Hove, East Sussex, was also closed this weekend – as the fate of dozens of other boozers remains uncertain
A total of 13 are currently being offered, reports the Mirrormeaning that an offer has been received without a sale taking place.
This is the full list of pubs that will be axed by Wetherspoons:
The Butlers Bell, Stafford
World’s Inn, Romford
Silkstone Inn, Barnsley
Mistake ‘Un, Bexleyheath
The Percy Shaw, Halifax
Jolly Sailor, Hanham
The Alfred Herring, Palmers Green
The Moon & Bell, Loughborough
The Widow Frost, Mansfield
Resolution, Middlesbrough
Foxley Hatch, Purley
The rising sun, Redditch
Sennockian, Sevenoaks
Admiral Sir Lucius Curtis, Southampton
The Columbian Press, Watford
The Malting House, Willenhall
The John Masefield, New Ferry
The Crosse Keys, Peebles
Lord Arthur Lee, Fareham
The Saltoun Inn, Fraserburgh
General Sir Redvers Buller, Crediton
Plow and harrow, Hammersmith
Thomas Leaper, Derby
Tollgate, Turnpike Lane
Asparagus, Battersea
Millers Well, East Ham
Hudson Bay, Bospoort
Angel, Islington
The billiard room, West Bromwich
Capitol, Forest Hill
The Bankers Draft, Eltham
Moon on the Hill, Harrow
The Bank House, Cheltenham
Last message, Loughton
The Postal Order in Worcester is one of 10 Wetherspoons pubs that have been sold
The news comes just weeks after Wetherspoons confirmed that 10 of its pubs will close for good after the sale – with a further 35 establishments up for sale.
Among those purchased are the Harvest Moon in Orpington, Moon on the Square in Basildon and the Postal Order in Worcester.
Chapel an Gansblydhen, in Bodmin, and Bootle’s Wild Rose are also closing their doors forever.
In January, the pub chain said sales were up at the end of 2022, but it is still struggling to keep up with pre-pandemic performance.
Like-for-like sales rose 18 per cent in the company’s 844 pubs in the last quarter of 2022, but are still 2 per cent behind 2019 levels.
Wetherspoons also noted that costs were much higher than three years ago, especially for labor, food, energy and maintenance.
Chairman Tim Martin said: ‘The aftermath of the pandemic and the lockdown restrictions have been much more difficult than anyone thought. That is the picture for the entire hospitality industry.
“People thought there would be a huge increase in people with cabin fever after the lockdown, but instead it’s been almost the opposite situation as people have made a habit of staying indoors.
“That’s the main thing that means sales are lower than in 2019. It’s getting better now, but it’s slow.”
But Wetherspoons added that it outpaced the broader pub and restaurant sector in December, with sales up a fifth compared to the national average of 15 percent in the month, according to the Coffer CGA Business Tracker.
North and South Wales Bank, Wrexham, is another branch that has been confirmed to have been sold.
Mr Martin said he feels the biggest threat to the hospitality industry is that pubs and restaurants are unfairly taxed, while supermarkets do not pay VAT on food sales.
North and South Wales Bank, Wrexham, is another branch that has been confirmed to have been sold
He said: ‘This problem has been exacerbated in recent years as supermarkets now trade alongside pubs on every high street, and with a huge tax break allowing them to lower the price of beer.
“In general, I think the non-executives of the biggest cafe and restaurant companies prefer to stick their heads in the sand and not get involved.”
But the chairman says he is “cautiously optimistic” about the company’s outlook for the fiscal year.
Wetherspoons is one of the UK’s most popular pub chains, with around 43,000 employees in 800 locations across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.