Robert Richardson FIH MI@RBWR
Full disclosure, for the majority of my career I’ve been an operator, and I know what it feels like to go to bed hoping tomorrow’s cash flow will enable you to pay tomorrow’s bills. My heart goes out to anyone experiencing the sleepless nights that come with running a business and being responsible for the livelihoods of their teams, and their families.
This weekend held one ambition, dinner out at a restaurant that had been on the radar for a while. A restaurant that opened in 2016, and one that was only months away from celebrating its tenth anniversary.
Ten years is a huge achievement for any business, let alone one operating under some of the highest cost burdens in Europe.
Then, just two days before the booking, the restaurant closed with immediate effect. The rising costs associated with running a business in 2026 were, in the owner’s own words, the “cause of death”.
Whilst patrons, myself included, are obviously saddened by the news, for the owners this is the end of a dream. For the team, it means livelihoods lost at a time when UK unemployment is at its highest level in years, with approximately 1.78 million people currently unemployed across the country.
The owners are now filing for bankruptcy, their dream, shattered.
As tragic, and arguably avoidable, as this story is, it is by no means unique. Across the UK, hospitality businesses are closing at an alarming rate, which pushes up our obscene unemployment rates each and every day.
Last week’s local election results delivered an unambiguous message from voters, reflecting growing frustration around the rising cost of living, taxation, and economic uncertainty facing both individuals and businesses alike.
Now, against this backdrop, a backdrop of a profession that feels its voice simply is not being heard despite being one of the UK’s greatest economic and social assets, we wait to see where government takes us next.
It is a fact that hospitality is a force for good. It is an economic driver, a creator of opportunity, and one of the few professions where any person, from any background, can grow, develop, and thrive.
When hospitality succeeds, communities succeed. When hospitality is supported, the wider economy benefits too.
The organisation I lead has more members than some countries have populations, so I speak with authority when I say that even in difficult times, I remain optimistic about the resilience, determination, and spirit of our hospitality family.
This profession of ours has faced enormous challenges before, and yet it continues to innovate, adapt, and inspire.
As long as we are left able to do so.
Hospitality matters, deeply, and it deserves not only to survive, but to thrive.
#Hospitality #HospitalityFamily #HospitalityMatters #ChesterHospitality
