Caribbean-inspired restaurant chain Bahama Breeze abruptly shut down one-third of its locations last week.
The closure included 15 locations across Florida, New Jersey, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New York, and Tennessee.
Why did Bahama Breeze shut down 15 restaurants?
The abrupt closures of several locations came after sales were down 7.7% last year, according to reports by CNN.
Maeve Webster, the president of a restaurant consulting firm, told CNN that casual restaurants may struggle as economic turmoil impacts low and middle-income families, the chain’s primary customers.
A statement from Darden, the parent company of Bahama Breeze, said in a statement that the closures are the “right decision because it will allow Bahama Breeze to focus on its highest performing restaurants and strengthen the brand’s overall performance.”
What do Bahama Breeze workers think of the closure?
In a viral video, a Bahama Breeze worker said they were called into a “last-minute” meeting and told that the location was shutting down immediately.
Several workers cried in the wake of the announcement. “This is some bullshit,” one said.
In the comments, other Bahama Breeze workers weighed in on the closure announcement.
“Please I work at Bahama breeze I’m scareddd,” one wrote.
“WAIT IT WAS MULTIPLE LOCATIONS??!!!! We were ALL in tears! I’m going to miss my bahama breeze family so much,” another said.
“Yea this just happened to me too. Except I missed the meeting and had to find out from my coworkers lol,” a third shared.
A spokesperson for the brand told CNN that impacted workers may be hired at other nearby Darden restaurants or receive severance.
“Hey girl, as somebody whose mom was a GM for Bahama Breeze for 20 years, her restaurant closed too. She suggests to reach out to Darden HR and see if there’s anything or any assistance they can give you with trying to get a job at another one of their 9 concepts,” another commenter suggested.
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