From Covid To Cost Hikes, How U.K. Hospitality Entrepreneurs Are Surviving
It has been a torrid few years for hospitality, battling Brexit-driven staff shortages, the pandemic, and now spiraling business costs.
According to new data, this latest crisis has left some with no option but to close, with U.K. pub and restaurant closures in 2022, exceeding those driven by the pandemic in 2021. The latest hospitality market monitor from AlixPartners CGA revealed that the final quarter of 2022 saw a decline of 1,611 hospitality premises, a 1.6% contraction of the U.K.’s hospitality sector over the three months. Across the whole of 2022, hospitality recorded a drop of 4,809 premises.
Yet other hospitality entrepreneurs have found ways to survive these business challenges. Korean Street food restaurant Seoul Bird opened its first site in London in July 2020. Like so many restaurants, they were severely hit by massive staffing shortages in the hospitality sector created by Brexit and the pandemic. Their initial response was to secure a visa sponsorship license. However, this was only viable for higher-level employees.
CEO, cofounder and executive chef Judy Joo says: “We have to pay higher competitive wages and offer good incentives to retain staff. Many restaurants have reduced hours of operation and menus due to a lack of staff. We have also found that word of mouth is our strongest recruitment tool, and we have employed many friends and relatives of those already working for us.”
Two years on, Seoul Bird has a further two sites, including a second venue in London and its first licensed site in the Aria Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, and has 52 members of staff. The challenge they face now is rising costs, and the impact on business operations and revenue as cash-strapped customers spend less on dining out.
Seoul Bird’s COO Andrew Hales has tackled this challenge by creating a solid network of suppliers and backup suppliers, allowing them to keep prices competitive and costs of goods sold (COGS) down.
