Struggling Restaurant Chain In Administration – Guildford Branch Closes Immediately

Published on: 21 May, 2019
Updated on: 24 May, 2019

By Hugh Coakley

Jamie’s Italian restaurant chain went into administration today (May 21) with its restaurants throughout the UK closing immediately. This included the restaurant in Friary Street, Guildford.

More than a 1,000 jobs are reported as being lost nationally.

Jamie’s Italian restaurant closed and in administration as from Tuesday, May 21 2019.

There were no staff at the Guildford branch this evening and a notice was taped on the front entrance stating: “This restaurant is now closed.”

Notice outside of the Jamie’s Italian in Friary Street stating that the restaurant is now closed and the Jamie Oliver companies were in administration.

The struggling group closed 12 of its branches last year. Around the same time, June 2018, it was reported that an advertisement had been spotted on a property website offering the Guildford restaurant to let for £9,224 per month.

Meanwhile, online customer reviews for the restaurant chain have been generally, only lukewarm, indicating that the effervescence and popularity of the TV chef, Jamie Oliver, was no longer being reflected in his restaurant business.

The celebrity chef, who injected millions of his own money into the ailing business, was quoted in 2018 as blaming rents, rates, the high street declining, food costs, Brexit and the increase in the minimum wage as factors that were causing the decline in his restaurant’s fortunes.

Although the Guildford branch was in Friary Street, close to a popular restaurant and fast food area of the town, it was isolated from the busiest footfall.

And with the closure of the adjacent New Look fashion store in November 2018, the collapse of Jamie’s Italian leaves a big gap at that end of Friary Street. The agent for the empty New Look store is advertising the property as providing opportunities for retail, restaurant or gym facilities.