Hog’s Breath Cafe closes even more restaurants
One of Australia’s best-loved restaurant chains has announced that two more locations will cease operations just days after three other stores closed – as the CEO reveals new plans to revamp the location.
Hog’s Breath Cafe, a restaurant known for its succulent steaks and curly fries, has announced that two franchises in southeastern Melbourne – Dandenong and Karingal – will close their doors for good.
The announcement comes just days after the locations in Tuggerah and Coffs Harbor NSW and Gladstone, Queensland were announced to have liquidated and devastated fans of the East Coast Aussie chain.
In a statement released Friday, Hog’s Breath Cafe said the Dandenong store was forced to close due to ongoing health issues at the franchisee and problems renewing the lease at the location.
Meanwhile, the Karingal store was closed due to the ongoing effects of renovations at a nearby mall that “decimated the food precinct.”
One of Australia’s most beloved restaurant chains has announced that two more locations will close (pictured, a Hogs’ Breath Cafe in Logan, Queensland)
Two Hogs’ Breath Cafe franchises in southeastern Melbourne – Dandenong and Karingal – are closing their doors for good this week (pictured, the restaurant’s famous curly fries)
“The restaurant was able to trade through Covid and continued with closures, but the delayed lease and increased competition in the new food district means the business is no longer viable for the franchisee,” the statement read.
Hog’s Breath CEO Steven Spurgin was quick to brush off reports that the company is struggling financially when he revealed plans for the chain’s future.
Mr Spurgin said the company was already looking for new locations for smaller restaurants, as well as replacements for Coffs Harbour, Tuggerah and Gladstone.
New restaurants will be modeled on a smaller floor plan to reduce rent, gas and electricity costs and ensure that restaurants are adequately staffed.
In rendered images of the new restaurants, customers sit at long metal and wood tables with modern, light furnishings.
Mr Spurgin said this was in line with a global trend of downsizing due to staff pressures, but would also create a more intimate dining experience, now preferred by the majority of customers.
“The changes being implemented, including a new restaurant size and interior design, will ensure the sustainability of the franchisees and the brand,” he said.
“We have many successful restaurants and happy franchisees and we are very confident in the continued expansion of the brand under new management, with our new interior design and restaurant size, and our continued regeneration in a post-Covid world.”
New restaurants will be modeled on a smaller floor plan to reduce costs of rent, gas and electricity and ensure restaurants are adequately staffed (photo, floor plans shown)
In rendered images of the new restaurants, customers sit at long metal and wood tables with modern, light furnishings (photo)
A smaller venue would cut costs but also provide a more intimate dining experience, now preferred by the majority of customers, said Hog’s Breath Cafe CEO
Hog’s Breath Cafe owners Don Algie and Ginger White have led the restaurant chain in a “tough business environment” for more than 34 years.
The owners recently bought back the business in October 2020 from HBCA, which operated the franchise system as Hog’s Australia’s Steakhouse.
They’ve spent the last 2.5 years planning how the chain will weather over the next three decades, aiming to return to the restaurant’s peak in 2016, when there were 86 locations across Australia.
Mr Spurgin said a crackdown on franchisees would inevitably bring more closures.
The CEO said that failure to comply with workplace laws and regulations put a franchisee at risk of having their franchise agreement terminated.
“Unfortunately we may see further closures due to this, but we will do everything we can to remain open and sustainable, but we are committed to operating within the Franchising Code of Conduct and complying with all requirements for running a business. in Australia, including compliance with corporate and tax laws,” he said.
When a franchise closed, the company would work closely with staff to ensure they are aware of the process and their rights, the CEO said.
“Our headquarters team works extremely hard to provide our franchisees with the tools they need to stay compliant, including training, financial review, operational support and business development.”
The restaurant chain has had to close nearly half of its locations in the past decade, with 12 Hog’s Breath locations across Australia closing in the past year
The restaurant chain has had to close nearly half of its locations over the past decade, with 12 Hog’s Breath locations across Australia closing in the past year.
Due to pandemic pressure, locations in Palmerston, Carindale, Albury and Canberra Civic were closed between December and February 2021.
Only 32 stores remain, the majority in Queensland, with the closures symbolizing the end of an era where customers valued simplicity and familiarity over a ‘dining experience’.
What such chains lacked in panache they made up for in good value; something that is increasingly difficult to achieve as rising wages, rents and electricity rates are all passed on to the end consumer.
2GB radio host Ray Hadley said Hog’s Breath cafe has always been an affordable place to eat, but the service was lacking at his local franchise.
“Maybe that’s why people don’t go there as often as they used to,” he said.
Growing awareness about healthy eating has also eroded the popularity of the old all-you-can-eat restaurants, and while convenient takeout options like McDonald’s and KFC aren’t disappearing, dine-in customers are now eschewing the carbs and sugar offerings of yesteryear.
Wayne Flower, chef and founder of food consultancy Pestle & Mortar, said chains like Hog’s Breath and Sizzler were a bit “dated and unhealthy.”
But he pointed out that there will be several reasons for their collapse beyond just the food they offered and changing consumer demands.
“They are often very large halls, so it is a challenge in itself to fill them up,” he said.
“There will be a lot of variables that we don’t see. Did Covid kill them enough that they could never bounce back? Does the franchise model charge them more? Did they have staffing problems? It may not just be the food they offer.’
There are only 33 Hog’s Breath Cafe left, most of them in Queensland
Suresh Manickam, CEO of the Restaurant and Catering Association (RCA), said they did not count franchises among their members.
But he outlined the problems the hospitality industry is currently facing.
“Cost of living pressures are mounting,” he said.
‘We’ve had rate hike after rate hike; we have had adverse weather conditions that have a domino effect on food prices. In addition, you have a skills shortage and we are not back to pre-pandemic levels, so all these factors are coming together and making it very difficult for the industry.”
Mr Manickam said some members of the RCA are reducing their opening hours to survive in the current climate.
“It’s hard, there’s no two ways about it,” he said. ‘But our members are also a fairly resilient bunch and they keep going.’