High street piri piri chicken chain Nando’s has been forced to temporarily close 50 restaurants due to issues with supply chains across England, Scotland and Wales.
Why is Nando's closed?
The popular brand currently operates more than 400 sites across the UK but is struggling to fulfil orders due to supply chain issues caused by Brexit. Nando’s has confirmed that its sites in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which have a unique customs arrangement, are unaffected by the disruption.
Punters began to notice their local stores were closed from yesterday and took to social media platforms to vent their disruption. In response to one disgruntled customer, Nando’s replied: “The UK supply chain is having a bit of a ‘mare right now. This is having a knock-on effect with some of our restaurants across England, Scotland and Wales. We are doing everything we can to get the PERi-PERi back where it belongs – on your plates!”
Nando’s also revealed that it is working to remedy the situation, by lending some of its staff to suppliers to help "get things moving". However, the restaurant chain did not confirm whether any staff had accepted this offer of work or what exactly they would be doing.
Nando’s is far from the only restaurant brand to face issues with suppliers in recent times. The supply of foodstuffs has been hit by summer delays at ports, as well as additional freight and shipping costs triggered by Brexit. Furthermore, hordes of workers are being asked to self isolate after being pinged by the NHS Test and Trace app, in what people are calling the ‘pingdemic’.
Earlier this week, fast food giant KFC announced that customers could expect stores to be offering a shorter menu than usual, as well as for some packaging to look different, as the brand battled with “disruption”.