DRINKERS have shared their devastation after a popular beerhouse closed down with immediate effect.
Manchester brewery Seven Brothers announced it would close one of its beerhouses in Middlewood, Salford.
A statement posted on the Seven Brothers website read: “It is with a heavy heart that we have had to take the decision to close our Middlewood Locks beerhouse. Apologies for any inconvenience.”
The venue first opened in 2019 and sold a range of ales and other drinks.
Many former customers have now taken to social media to share their sadness about the closure.
One said they were absolutely gutted and the location was a “lovely dog friendly pub”.
While another simply said “oh no”.
The venue has received rave reviews on TripAdvisor, with one visitor describing it as a “lovely place offering a wide range of craft ales and other drinks”.
While a fourth said the spot had a “fantastic homely feeling with great beer and food”.
The popular business was set up by the McAvoy brothers, Guy, Keith, Luke, Daniel, Nathan, Kit, and Greg.
The craft brewery first launched in 2014 and has four more locations across Manchester and Liverpool.
It sells a range of IPAs which are stocked at speciality stores as well as Asda.
It comes amid a tough period for the wider craft beer sector as it grapples with rising costs and weak consumer spending.
Earlier this month, Magic Rock Brewery, the maker of IPAs such as Cannonball and Magic Haze, announced its intent to appoint administrators.
It comes after Company House filings showed the brewer’s next accounts made up to December 31 2022 are more than a year overdue, a report in The Grocer said.
Usually, a notice of intention to appoint administrators helps troubled businesses explore rescue options or protect them from creditors’ demands.
This process can offer some breathing space for troubled firms but it also means the firm is still at risk of collapse.
Administration is when all control of a company is passed to an appointed licensed insolvency practitioner
It doesn’t necessarily mean the end of the business.
Instead, administrators will try to help a company find ways to repay debts or solve its cash flow problems.
Magic Rock operates two taprooms around the Huddersfield area and a range of its craft beers have been stocked in supermarkets such as Asda, Tesco and Ocado and a range of independent stores.
TROUBLE FOR BREWERIES
It comes amid a tough period for the wider craft beer sector as it grapples with rising costs and weak consumer spending.
In November, fellow craft brewer ORA Brewing said it would close its taproom in Tottenham, London.
The Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company (CMBC) also closed its Wolverhampton’s Banks’s Brewery late last year.
Elsewhere, Cellar Head Brewing Company and Tap Room also fell into administration after attempts to find a buyer for the business failed.
Even pub giant Greene King, which owns 1,600 boozers across the country, was forced to shut down its 200-year-old Bury St. Edmunds brewery.
The number of craft breweries in the UK fell from 1,828 at the start of 2023 to 1,815 at the start of 2024.
The most recent figures show this now stands at 1,748 according to the latest report up to June from the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates (SIBA).
What is happening to the hospitality industry?
By Laura McGuire, consumer reporter
MANY Food and drink chains have been struggling in recently as the cost of living has led to fewer people spending on eating out.
Businesses had been struggling to bounce back after the pandemic, only to be hit with soaring energy bills and inflation.
Multiple chains have been affected, resulting in big-name brands like Wetherspoons and Frankie & Benny’s closing branches.
Some chains have not survived, Byron Burger fell into administration last year, with owners saying it would result in the loss of over 200 jobs.
Pizza giant, Papa Johns is shutting down 43 of its stores soon.
Tasty, the owner of Wildwood, said it will shut sites as part of major restructuring plans.
