Hooters has permanently closed several restaurant locations due to “pressure from current market conditions,” the chain said in a statement sent to several news outlets. In the same vein as many fast casual restaurants nationwide, Hooters has been hit hard by inflation-related food costs, which is encouraging consumers to eat at home instead of dining out.
On Monday, the Atlanta, Georgia-based Hooters announced that it would be closing some locations. Hooters restaurants in Florida, Texas, Kentucky, and Indiana have also officially shut down, according to USA Today.
Hooters joins a list of restaurants that have shuttered many of its locations over rising inflation, food price hikes, and increased labor costs. Last month, Red Lobster filed for bankruptcy after closing nearly 50 restaurant locations across the U.S. and liquidating restaurant equipment via auctions. Applebee’s also shut down hundreds of restaurants since 2017. According to the company’s chief executive officer John Peyton, Applebee’s is slated to close approximately 25 to 35 locations this year.
“With new Hooters restaurants opening domestically and internationally, new Hooters frozen products launching at grocery stores, and the Hooters footprint expanding into new markets with both company and franchise locations, this brand of 41 years remains highly resilient and relevant,” Hooters said in a statement to Quartz. The company said it plans to continue “serving guests at home, on the go and at its restaurants” both nationally and internationally.
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