Heat is on for future of our curry houses
Going for curry at the end of a night out is a way of life for many, But Indian restaurants have been hit hard by Covid-19 and many might never reopen. NICK HORNER reports
AT least a quarter of curry houses in the UK could close for good if the Covid-19 crisis continues, says a Sutton Coldfield restaurateur. And Birmingham’s Balti Triangle could be hard hit. Shahab Uddin, who owns Streetly Balti, fears many bigger Indian restaurants will be unable to reopen due to the two-metre social distancing rule, which means they will no longer be able to ‘‘pack in diners’’.
Mr Uddin, who has been in the trade since 1993, said his business had accessed the Government’s furlough support and a £10,000 grant, via Birmingham City Council. His restaurant has developed takeaway services to ‘‘tick-over’’ in the short-term.
But he believes the damage to the wider industry has been more severe because many operators had no knowledge of assistance available, and grants were not enough to tide over larger venues. Mr Uddin said: “My restaurant is quite small – we’ve built our reputation on being small and cosy. After Covid-19 I don’t think cosy and small is going to work.
‘‘Until we’re allowed to open the restaurant fully I’m going to stick to takeaways. If I have any customers who really want to come to the restaurant I’ll maybe just allow one or two tables. I wouldn’t risk taking any more than that.
“Eighty per cent of Indian restaurants in the UK are Bangladeshi owned. The thing about Bangladeshi restaurateurs is that most haven’t had any real, formal education and they’re struggling. “One of my friends, who’s a landlord, says the people renting the restaurant off him just up and left – they closed the business down. If they’d applied for the furlough payments [and] grant they would have been okay. They clearly didn’t know so they closed the restaurant.
“I’ve a lot of friends who have big restaurants on the high street with massive rates. The grant is not going to help them – their expenses are very high.
“The debt they’re going to accrue [means] it’s going to be difficult for them to continue.
‘‘Having talked to friends up and down the country, I’m estimating at least 25 per cent to 30 per cent of bigger restaurants are not going to open again.
“Pricing is a big issue, especially in the Balti belt in Birmingham, because they’ve built a whole industry on being cheap and cheerful. That’s not going to work with Covid-19 [and] if they’re not adjusting menu prices they’re going to struggle a lot. To survive they need to start pricing correctly.”
The figures were revealed in episode two of a podcast series called Aston Means Business: SMEs Adapting to Covid-19 challenges, presented by former Birmingham Mail editor Steve Dyson.
Price rises to ‘‘realistic levels’’ may be needed, according to Professor Monder Ram, director of the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship at Aston Business School, who fears more than a third of curry houses are under threat. Professor Ram said he was not surprised at Mr Uddin’s views because he felt the curry house sector was facing dire challenges even before Covid-19.
He said: “The estimate [of closures] that Shahab’s given isn’t out of line with industry estimates – it could actually be worse. The sector’s facing so many challenges. The trend is for more adventurous eating, so you’ll see lots of Vietnamese, Turkish and Mexican restaurants, even large chain stores getting in on the act.
“Supermarkets are one of the most prolific sellers of curries and large chains of pubs and restaurants are entering this market, [and] these problems of competition and newcomers have been accentuated by Covid-19.
“A group of friends going out for a lively evening of entertainment finished off with a curry is part and parcel of the British way of life. If you take that away you’re taking away the very essence of what going out for a curry means.”
Prof Ram also agreed that many curry house owners had not tried to access Government assistance, because they often shied away from what they saw as formal public sector institutions. But he insisted there was a possible future if more operators upgraded services and prices.
He said: “Covid-19 is providing paradoxically a brilliant opportunity to reflect on the business models that traditionally Bangladeshi caterers have used. There has been very little investment in new tech and very little in skills. Organisations like my own need to get much closer to people like Shahab and collaboratively develop solutions [they] might follow.”
“The traditional model in this sector has always been low tech, low wages and low prices. This is unlikely to survive in the future and major changes will needed.’’
Pricing is a big issue, especially in the Balti belt in Birmingham, because they’ve built a whole industry on being cheap and cheerful
Shahab Uddin. pictured