PizzaExpress has decided to close 73 of its 449 UK restaurants due to coronavirus lockdowns and higher costs, in a move that will impact 1,100 jobs in the UK.
The company said rental costs have become unsustainable and it has launched a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) to improve its finances by cutting rental agreements and temporarily moving from quarterly to monthly rents.
PizzaExpress operates in Ireland under the Milano brand and has 15 restaurants in Dublin, Galway, Cork, Newbridge, Limerick, Killarney and Ennis.
The company said that the Milano restaurants are not included within the CVA proposal in the UK and will remain open.
PizzaExpress joins a long list of UK's restaurants chains that have closed outlets and cut thousands of jobs, seeking to restructure their businesses in the face of the pandemic.
"Hard as this process is, it will protect the jobs of over 9,000 of our colleagues," Zoe Bowley, the company's UK and Ireland managing director, said in a statement.
PizzaExpress said it would seek approval for the CVA proposals from its creditors on September 4.
The group had said earlier this month that 166 of its restaurants are now open and further reopenings are under way.
Earlier this month, Chinese buyout firm Hony Capital decided to cease control of PizzaExpress, which it bought for £900m in 2014, to creditors in a debt-for-equity swap.
