A MUCH-loved fast-food restaurant has announced its shock closure after struggling with soaring costs.
The beloved takeaway, known for its kebabs, pizzas, and burgers, cited rising electricity bills and rent as the reason behind the closure.
Istanbul Kebab, based on High Street in Irvine, revealed the heartbreaking news on Facebook, confirming that Sunday, March 2, would be their last day of trading.
In an emotional farewell message, the owners wrote: “Today we have to announce the permanent closure of our shop.
“Tomorrow will be our last day serving you, and it truly breaks our hearts to say goodbye.
“We want to thank each and every one of you for your support and kindness over this time.
“If you’d like to enjoy your favourite kebabs, pizzas, and burgers one last time, we’ll be taking orders until tomorrow. We’d love to see you before we close our doors for good.”
Customers rushed to share their sadness over the closure, with many praising the restaurant not just for its food but for its generosity.
One heartbroken customer wrote: “So sad to see you close – your food is delicious, and you are so kind and do a lot for the community. I was so touched when you opened for the homeless on Christmas Day.”
Another added: “That’s a real shame. You guys are always so nice and welcoming and serve delicious food! Wish you all the best.”
A loyal fan from Edinburgh also shared their disappointment, saying: “Definitely one of the best kebabs I’ve had as well as fantastic service. Just gutted I couldn’t come through more often.”
Despite the sad news, customers are hoping Istanbul Kebab will be able to reopen at a new location in the future.
One customer wrote: “I’m praying you guys relocate and open in the future, i can’t see you go”.
Another commented on it being a difficult blow for the High Street, “We’re going to have nothing left on the high street, what is going on?”.
The shock closure comes as small businesses across the UK continue to struggle with rising costs, with many finding it impossible to keep up with skyrocketing energy bills and rent.
It comes as another beloved Italian restaurant once described as a “diamond” by diners suddenly shut its doors after nearly 50 years of operations.
Santoro in Yarm, North Yorkshire, announced on its website that it had permanently closed its doors after a “wonderful 45 years of business.”
Elsewhere, well-known Italian restaurant chain Wildwood, announced the closure of its restaurant in Chelsmford.
Hospitality industry struggles
Many food and drink businesses have faced significant challenges recently, as the rising cost of living has led to a decline in dining out.
After struggling to recover from the impact of the pandemic, many establishments were then hit with soaring energy bills and mounting inflationary pressures.
This has forced several well-known chains to shut locations, with big brands like Wetherspoons and Frankie & Benny’s among those affected.
Craig Rachel, director at financial advisory firm AlixPartners, outlined the key factors that have driven businesses to close sites in 2024.
He said: “Restaurants have seen the accumulation of external pressures in 2024, including rising utility costs, food prices and labour costs.
“Although some of these factors have stabilised over recent months, the overall impact is significant and will be exacerbated again in 2025 following the budget announcements, and this has all affected profitability.
“Some restaurant groups have been able to mitigate this to a certain extent through operational efficiencies and pricing, but consumer spending in the sector is under pressure meaning price measures are often unable to fully bridge the gap.”
Why are retailers closing stores?
RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.
High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.
However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: “The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025.”
It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024.
End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker.
It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date.
This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023.
It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns.
The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker.
Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations.
Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes.
Professor Bamfield has warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector.
“By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer’s household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020.”
