The reason why Jamie Oliver’s food empire has reached crisis point
For the longest time, it seemed like Jamie Oliver could do no wrong. The culinary whiz had turned his popularity on TV into a global empire, putting his name to a range of restaurants, products and publications. But now, even as we’re mere months into 2018, reports suggest this empire is crumbling beneath the celebrity chef.
London’s Sunday Telegraph has reported Oliver’s two-site Barbecoa chain is on the brink of collapse, following problems at his other chain, Jamie’s Italian, which announced earlier this year it would be closing 13 sites and begging for rent cuts at 11 others.
While it’s a difficult time to be operating a restaurant anywhere, industry experts believe there are some problems facing Oliver’s undertakings that are entirely unique.
Fairfax cites an unnamed expert who suggests Oliver might have been given bad advice, “"I think he has got people around him who have probably overleveraged his brand and been too ambitious at a time when they should have been more thoughtful.”
The report also published comments from Peter Backman, whose consultancy business monitors the culinary industry, who suggested sky-high rents were also causing a problem.
"It is noticeable the sites it is closing are in high-profile places such as Piccadilly and Bluewater shopping centre," he says.
"This suggests the business is paying eye-watering rents and the custom is just not coming through."
But Backman also suggests Oliver’s brand is not as strong as it once was.