Top 50 Gastropub shuts due to ‘economic downturn’
The Five Bells Inn, Cullompton was taken on by James and Charlie Garnham in 2017 and was number 34 on the prestigious list.
However, the duo have announced to closure of the pub and has thanked its customers and suppliers for the support they have shown throughout the time they ran the venue.
A post on the pub’s social media and on its website said: “Closure notice. It is with great sadness that James and Charlie have to announce the closure of the Five Bells Inn.
“Lockdowns and the economic downturn they have caused have left the business struggling financially and, in spite of the hard work of the team and the support of our customers, suppliers and our landlord, it is simply not possible to continue trading."
Fantastic pub
It added: “All deposits taken for future bookings have been processed for refunds via Stripe. We hope new owners can be found in due course to reopen a fantastic pub.
“We want to thank all our customers in the past (nearly) five years and all our staff and suppliers for supporting us.”
The Devon pub is the latest in a slew of closures to be announced with the Star Inn the Harbour, Whitby also shutting its doors.
The Andrew Pern-owned pub is closing after an “utter lack of support” from the local council following the pandemic.
This follows data that revealed 50 pubs a month are disappearing from the communities they serve across England and Wales.
Closure rate rise
Statistics from real estate adviser Altus Group showed the number of pubs closing rocketed by 50% in the three months to the end of September with Wales and the north west losing the greatest number.
During this period, analysis of Government property tax records found 150 pubs were either demolished or converted into other types of use like homes and offices.
The total number of pubs, including those vacant and being offered to let, dropped below 40,000 for the first time to 39,973 at the end of June compared to 40,173 at the end of the 2021 calendar year, according to Altus Group’s annual business rates review.
Furthermore, research from CGA and AlixPartners last month (October) found licensed venues including pubs, bars, cafés, restaurants and hotels saw a net decline of one closure per hour in the third quarter of this year, with warnings there were more on the cards.
