A growing number of restaurants and retail stores plan to close their businesses during the year-end and New Year holidays.
Amid the worsening labor shortage, the restaurant industry in particular is experiencing a higher turnover rate than other industries. With the recent trend, the food-service industry aims to reduce the burden on workers, hoping to secure more employees.
Skylark Holdings Co. plans to close about 2,700 outlets, or about 80% of its group eateries, including Gusto and Jonathan's, from 6 p.m. on Dec. 31 to noon on New Year's Day. Last year, the company shortened opening hours at some of its outlets by about one to two hours and will expand the number of outlets following suit as well as the hours of closures.
"We'd like to create an environment that will motivate employees to work and make them feel they want to stay in the job," a company official said.
Royal Holdings Co. plans to close about 200 restaurants, or 90%, of its main restaurant chain Royal Host on Dec. 31 and New Year's Day. Korakuen ramen chain eateries, except for a few outlets, will be closed on New Year's Day after shortening their business hours on Dec. 31.
Parco Co. opened three stores, including its Ikebukuro store, on New Year's Day this year, but will close all of its 18 stores on Jan. 1. Lawson, Inc. plans to close about 100 stores on New Year's Day in a trial.
"We hope that the closure will bring peace of mind to franchisee owners," said Lawson President Sadanobu Takemasu.
"At restaurants and retail stores where part-time workers are the main workforce, labor costs among other costs have risen due to a shortage of staff, resulting in a mismatch with actual sales. The trend of business closures during the year-end and New Year's holidays will probably continue to expand," said Takuya Hoshino, an economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute Inc.
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