A POPULAR restaurant chain has closed one of its branches after eight years, blaming the cost-of-living crisis and tough economic conditions.
The Dunfermline restaurant, located next to the Alhambra Theatre, closed at the end of 2024 and has yet to reopen, despite being initially marked as a temporary closure.
It’s also been removed from the Monterey Jack’s website, which now lists locations in Braehead, Edinburgh, Falkirk, Glasgow City Centre, Glasgow Fort, Perth, Stirling, and M&D’s Scotland’s Theme Park.
Richard Fergie, a spokesperson for the restaurant group, confirmed that the Dunfermline branch is under review after temporarily closing due to staff shortages.
He explained: “The store was recently closed temporarily due to staffing issues, but it is now under review for its viability.”
Fergie added that no final decision has been made yet, saying: “Like many hospitality businesses in the UK, we have to assess all locations to determine if they are sustainable moving forward.”
Monterey Jack’s, known for its gourmet American-style burgers, hot dogs, nachos, and cocktails, has been a staple in Dunfermline for several years.
However, the rising cost of goods, energy, and staffing issues have made it increasingly difficult for the business to remain sustainable at its current location.
While the future of the Dunfermline branch remains uncertain, Fergie hinted at the possibility of relocating to a new site in the area that may be more suitable for the business’s long-term goals.
The leasehold for the premises has already been placed on the market.
Store closures are hitting not just restaurants but major retailers too.
Superdry, with 84 locations, is shutting its Eastgate Shopping Centre store in Basildon this Saturday, followed by another in Bradford soon.
This comes after the closure of its Aberdeen store just a month ago, with staff redirecting customers online.
Kaspa’s Desserts in Basildon closed earlier this year due to landlord issues, while a Homebase in nearby Vange also shut last month.
The Nisa Local chain, which operates over 1,300 stores, is also feeling the strain as the retail landscape changes.
Why are retailers closing shops?
EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre’s decline.
The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors.
In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping.
Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April 2025, will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed.
The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing.
Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns.
Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko to name a few.
What’s increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online.
They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
A sign in the window initially indicated a short-term closure, but weeks later, the restaurant has yet to reopen[/caption]
