While there are few sectors that will escape the impact of this unprecedented economic crisis unscathed, some are clearly more vulnerable than others, and the casual dining sector is right up at the top of the list.
Across the world restaurants are shut, with some doing what they can to morph into takeaway options serviced by the likes of Deliveroo, and others merely closing the doors and laying off the staff. Those with deep-pocketed owners will survive and bounce back after restrictions are lifted, but many will face a real struggle for survival.
This was a sector that, in many global markets, was already struggling with rising rents and taxes, increased food costs and wage bills, as well as oversupply into a heavily traded and competitive arena. Famous Brands has announced that it will no longer provide funding to its UK chain Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK), for which it paid £120m in 2016 in a transaction that was a brilliant sale for its former owners, and a truly catastrophic purchase for Famous Brands.
A mere two years after GBK was acquired, it admitted it was financially distressed and entered into an arrangement with its creditors, and while GBK made an excellent burger, it was caught in a devastating financial squeeze. The rest of Famous Brands’ portfolio is in lockdown for various lengths of time, and the initial periods may be extended according to the progress of the pandemic. The company is generating no revenue during this period, and while it has managed to restructure its debt, the future looks more than a little troubled.
Ritex: Things are looking up
While much initial commentary on the likely impact of lockdown predicted a rush to the divorce courts after a few weeks of imposed togetherness, news coming out of Germany suggests that couples are taking advantage of the situation to enjoy an unprecedented quantity of Ugandan Discussions.
No less an organ than The Financial Times reports that sales of condoms and exotic sexual accessories are going through the roof, with Ritex, Germany’s largest producer of condoms, seeing sales double in March compared to the previous year.
The Dating und Partnerschaft section of the company’s website offers all manner of tips for those seeking to tip the work-love balance in the right direction, which is particularly important now that social life has been closed down and there’s not even any live sport to watch. Such is the diligence with which the nation has been putting its collective back into making the best of the crisis that experts have been suggesting that the country may have to react to a baby boom around Christmas, a concern for an already overstretched medical profession.
News from a leading online retailer of personal erotica says that sales in Bavaria of fantasy nurse costumes have rocketed by 3,000%, suggesting a truly hands-on level of appreciation for the heroes of the profession. On a global level Malaysia’s shutdown caused Karex, which produces 20% of the world’s condoms, to close down completely for 10 days, and it has lost 200-million units of production, raising the alarming prospect of a global shortage that could put a real dent in the morale of the populace.
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