Pizza Express Will Make 1,300 More People Redundant After Coronavirus Downturn

73 closures can’t stem the tide at Pizza Express

1,300 Pizza Express workers will lose their jobs in more cuts at the beloved pizza chain, according to Propel. Having agreed to close 73 restaurants at the cost of 1,100 jobs last month, the latest round of cuts is more directly reflective of the impact of COVID-19. The initial closures, while hastened by the pandemic, were caused by £1.1 billion of debt accumulated in a game of private equity pass-the-parcel.

The brand directly referred to the “polo mint” economy phenomenon in explaining the cuts, whereby the centres of cities experience sharper downturn than suburban or residential areas. It said, “Although some restaurants in suburban and out-of-town locations have continued to trade comparatively well, some city centre sites have been particularly hard-hit. Against this backdrop, and particularly given the expectation that footfall will continue to be affected during the winter months and beyond, the company has had to make the difficult decision to reduce the size of its restaurant teams.” [Propel]

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