Wetherspoons shuts two more pubs as DOZENS of boozers across Britain are earmarked for closure – so is your local Spoons at risk?
- Two boozers – one in Hove and the other in Southport – become the latest to shut
- Dozens of other Wetherspoon pubs nationwide remain at risk of being axed
Wetherspoons has shut two pubs for good – while dozens more boozers remain in the firing line.
Hove’s The Cliftonville, in East Sussex, Southport’s The Willow Grove, in Merseyside, were the latest sites to be axed, closing on Sunday.
The closures come ahead of the shutdown of The Sir John Stirling Maxwell in Glasgow, which is pour its final pint on March 26.
Meanwhile, dozens of other Wetherspoons sites remain at risked of being axed nationwide, in a fresh blow to Britain’s pub trade.
The sites are risk are currently on sale. But if no buyer is found, they will be permanently wrapped up.
Southport’s The Willow Grove, in Merseyside, was one of the latest sites to be axed, closing on Sunday
The Cliftonville, in Hove, East Sussex was also closed over the weekend – as the fate of dozens of other boozers remains uncertain
A total of 13 are currently under offer, reports the Mirror, which means an offer has been received by no sale has been made.
This is the full list of pubs set to be axed by Wetherspoons:
The Butlers Bell, Stafford
Worlds Inn, Romford
Silkstone Inn, Barnsley
Wrong ‘Un, Bexleyheath
The Percy Shaw, Halifax
Jolly Sailor, Hanham
The Alfred Herring, Palmers Green
READ MORE: Another 10 Wetherspoons pubs are closing for good after being sold off with another 35 boozers still on the market… so is YOUR local on the list?
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 Colombia Press, Watford
The Malthouse, Willenhall
The John Masefield, New Ferry
The Crosse Keys, Peebles
Lord Arthur Lee, Fareham
The Saltoun Inn, Fraserburgh
General Sir Redvers Buller, Crediton
Plough & Harrow, Hammersmith
Thomas Leaper, Derby
Tollgate, Turnpike Lane
Asparagus, Battersea
Millers Well, East Ham
Hudson Bay, Forest Gate
Angel, Islington
The Billiard Hall, West Bromwich
Capitol, Forest Hill
The Bankers Draft, Eltham
Moon on the Hill, Harrow
The Bank House, Cheltenham
Last Post, Loughton
The Postal Order in Worcester is one of 10 Wetherspoons pubs which have been sold
The news comes just weeks after Wetherspoons has confirmed that 10 of its pubs will be closing for good after being sold – with another 35 branches 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 will also close their doors for ever.
The full list of pubs that are under offer – but remain in the firing line
Here is the full list of pubs currently under offer
The Butlers Bell, Stafford
The Percy Shaw, Halifax
Foxley Hatch, Purley
Tollgate, Turnpike Lane
Asparagus, Battersea
Millers Well, East Ham
Hudson Bay, Forest Gate
Angel, Islington
The Billiard Hall, West Bromwich
Capitol, Forest Hill
The Bankers Draft, Eltham
Moon on the Hill, Harrow
Last Post, Loughton
In January, the pub chain said sales jumped at the end of 2022 but it is still struggling to keep up with its pre-pandemic performance.
Like-for-like sales rose 18 per cent in the last quarter of 2022 at the firm’s 844 pubs, but are still 2 per cent behind 2019 levels.
Wetherspoons also noted that costs were far higher than three years ago, especially for labour, food, energy and maintenance.
Its chairman Tim Martin said: ‘The aftermath of the pandemic and lockdown restrictions have been far more difficult than anyone thought. That is the picture for the whole pub and restaurant industry.
‘People thought that after lockdown there would be a boom in people suffering from cabin fever but, instead, it has almost been the opposite situation as people have got in the habit of staying in.
‘That’s the big thing that means sales are down on 2019. Things are improving now but it’s slow.’
But Wetherspoons added that it it trumped the wider pub and restaurant sector in December, with sales jumping by a fifth compared with the national average of 15 per cent in the month, according to the Coffer CGA Business Tracker.
North and South Wales Bank, Wrexham, is another branch which has been confirmed as sold.
Mr Martin said he feels the biggest threat to the hospitality industry is that pubs and restaurants are taxed unfairly, while supermarkets pay no VAT on food sales.
North and South Wales Bank, Wrexham, is another branch which has been confirmed as sold
He said: ‘This issue has been exacerbated in recent years because supermarkets now trade next to pubs on every high street, and with a huge tax benefit which means they can lower the price of beer.
‘By and large, I think the non-executive directors of the largest pub and restaurant companies prefer to dig their heads in the sand, and not get involved.’
But the chairman says he is ‘cautiously optimistic’ about the company’s prospects for the financial year.
Wetherspoons is one of the most popular pub chains in the UK, employing about 43,000 across its 800 sites in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
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