Town’s adios to chiquito
Restaurant chain pulls the plug on Hamilton eaterie as yet another big name departure sparks further fears
Hamilton’s Chiquito restaurant is to close.
The eatery is on a hit list of 33 under-performing sites identified by owners The Restaurant Group. Up to 25 staff are said to be affected.
It is another blow for the town centre, with a recent Advertiser investigation highlighting that 45 units are already empty.
Hamilton town centre suffered another blow this week with the announcement that the Chiquito restaurant is closing.
Around 20 to 25 staff are said to be affected by the decision.
The restaurant, which is located in the town’s Palace Grounds Road, is on the hit list of 33 under-performing Chiquito and Frankie & Benny sites identified in a strategic review by the owners The Restaurant Group.
The town’s Frankie & Benny’s restaurant, which sits just yards from the Chiquito, is safe.
It is understood that the firm will try to help staff be redeployed into other restaurant chains.
A recent investigation, carried out by the Advertiser, identified that 45 business units in Hamilton are empty.
The move prompted a town centre consultation by two local politicians.
Angela Crawley MP and Christina Mckelvie MSP set up the consultation to listen to concerned Hamilton residents, business owners and town centre shoppers.
This week, both are concerned by the news of yet another closure.
Ms Mckelvie said: “I am deeply concerned that the Restaurant Group has decided to close Chiquito, potentially making up to 25 full and part-time staff unemployed.
“Whilst I welcome the proposals to mitigate job losses by redeploying staff to other restaurant sites, it doesn’t change the fact that yet another business has disappeared from Hamilton town centre.
“The Scottish Government stands ready to help all those affected find a route back into employment.
“Chiquito, Bairds and BHS are all symptoms of the same problem — that Hamilton is in need of fresh investment. That is exactly what our Hamilton town centre action plan hopes to achieve.”
Ms Crawley (below) added: “Chiquito closing means another empty shop in our town centre and more people unemployed.
“The loss of such a large store is disappointing and its closure will leave a gap that may be hard to fill.
“However, it is encouraging to hear that some staff will stay in employment and that the Scottish Government can provide support to help those out of work back into a job.
“But the problems the high street faces are changing and we need to work together to remove the barriers that are blocking trade.
“The Hamilton town centre action plan is well underway, and if the recommendations we make are taken on board, I am confident we can stem the rise in empty business premises and bring more trade to our town.”
Mark Calpin, Hamilton Business Improvement District (BID) chairman said: “The BID are disappointed to learn of the news of the intended closure of Chiquito and hope that all the employees are able to swiftly find suitable employment. “The town has a wide range of bars and restaurants, independent and branded alike, and we are sure that they will all be able to offer appealing options to customers to continue to entice them into the town.” Debbie Hewitt, chairman of the Restaurant Group, said: “This has been a challenging trading period for our leisure brands, albeit with a good performance from our pubs and concessions businesses. The board has moved quickly to undertake a review of the operating strategy and we now have clarity on the issues facing our leisure brands, particularly Frankie & Benny’s. “The brand remains relevant and popular and we are confident that improved performance will be achieved by being more customerfocused and data-driven, and through better operational execution. “A new executive team is in place to lead the implementation of this first phase of the review and to apply the learnings to our other brands. “The company is profitable, highly cash generative and has a strong balance sheet, and given our confidence in the current trading forecast, we are declaring an interim dividend of 6.8 pence per share, unchanged from 2015.”