Bettys closes York shop after 50 years

Bettys has announced the closure of its smallest branch in York, leaving nine jobs at risk.

The shop, known as Little Bettys, is on Stonegate, just around the corner from the Harrogate-based company’s larger tearoom on St Helen’s Square.

The decision to close follows a three week consultation with staff.

Little Bettys’ upstairs cafe closed in March, which affected 34 employees.

The company said in a statement today it was “an increasingly challenging environment to operate in, and the least commercially viable of the branches”.

Simon Eyles, managing director of Bettys, said:

“This has been a very tough decision, but one we have made for the long-term future of our business.

“Our people are our strength and we are focussing our energy now to find opportunities for the Little Bettys team in other roles within the business.

“We hope people will be able to pay us a last visit at Little Bettys and that we can help them create new memories in our other branches over the years to come.”

A final closing date is yet to be confirmed.

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Bettys’ other tearooms in Harrogate, Harlow Carr, Ilkley, Northallerton and York remain open.

Earlier this year Bettys said it faced its worst recruitment crisis in recent years, forcing it to close its Harrogate store four hours earlier than usual.

Nine jobs at risk as Bettys considers closing shop after 50 years

Bettys managers are considering plans to close one of its York stores after failing to find a “workable option” to keep the 50-year-old store open.

The store, known as Little Bettys, in York’s Stonegate lost its upstairs cafe in March but now the company is looking into the future of the shop too.

When the Stonegate cafe closed earlier in the year 34 employees were affected.

If the shop were to close as well, nine members of staff would be at risk of losing their jobs.

In a statement, a Bettys spokeswoman admitted the store had been the “most operationally and commercially challenging of our branches”.

She added every effort had been made to re-deploy staff elsewhere in the company and a final decision was yet to be reached.

“Earlier this year we took the decision to permanently close the upstairs café, but kept the small downstairs shop open with a plan to look at different options and formats for the building.

“Sadly, to date, we’ve been unable to find a workable option, so we’ve made the team aware of a proposal to close the entire branch.”

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The spokeswoman said none of Bettys’ other tearooms in Harrogate, Harlow Carr, Ilkley, Northallerton and York were at risk of closure.

Earlier this year Bettys said it was facing its worst recruitment crisis in recent years forcing it to close its Harrogate store four hours earlier than usual.

34 jobs at risk as Bettys closes York cafe

Bettys has confirmed that it will not reopen its Stonegate cafe in the centre of York.

Speculation started to grow when it was not included in Bettys reopening map before multiple sources told the Stray Ferret that it was closing with job losses.

The famous Harrogate based company has said that it will reopen the shop but not the cafe at “Little Bettys.”

As a result of the closure there are 34 jobs at risk. Bettys is hoping to redeploy staff where possible.

Simon Eyles, managing director of Bettys, said the closure came with a heavy heart:

“We’ve been welcoming customers to a café on Stonegate for over 50 years. We’re incredibly grateful for the loyalty and kindness of York’s residents and visitors over that time, and for the talent, commitment and dedication of our colleagues at the branch.

“We haven’t taken this decision lightly, but we know it’s the right choice for the long term. Bettys is a 100-year-old family business and our history has shown us that we need to adapt and change.

“You may well know that our Stonegate café is the smallest of our cafés, housed in a unique, historic building, full of charm and quirks.

“This character and layout, much loved by customers, has become an increasingly challenging environment to work in.

“The back-of-house kitchen area is very small and the behind-the-scenes space for our people is very different to the working conditions we offer elsewhere.”

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The Bettys Stonegate is the least commercially viable of the six existing branches, Mr Eyles added.

Many businesses have struggled financially during the pandemic.

Famous names like Debenhams and John Lewis have either had to close completely or reduce store numbers.

As part of its reopening plans the tea house in RHS Harlow Carr will open first for takeaway food and drinks from March 29.

Bettys shops will then open to visitors on April 12, which is the earliest that non-essential shops can re-open under the government’s road map.

All Bettys cafes will then re-open on May 17, except for the Stonegate branch.