News: No chicken tonight as Nando's forced to close Rotherham store

Popular flame-grilled peri-peri chicken specialists, Nando's, has been forced to close a number of stores as it suffers from problems with its suppliers.

A message has been on the Rotherham store's webpage all this week reading: "We're closed for now for Eat-in, Delivery and Collect."

Founded in South Africa in 1987, Nando's operates a casual dining restaurant group with 1,000 outlets specialising in chicken with influences from Portugal and South Africa. The first UK restaurant opened in 1992 and there are now over 400 restaurants in the UK.

Around 40 stores were closed this week with the group citing staffing issues at its suppliers' factories.

70 staff were seconded to the suppliers to help "get things moving again".

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A Nando's spokesperson told The BBC: "The UK food industry has been experiencing disruption across its supply chain in recent weeks due to staff shortages and Covid isolations, and a number of our restaurants have been impacted."

"However, since Monday, a team of our brilliant Nandocas have been supporting our key suppliers onsite - working in partnership to help get things moving again, and this has already had a positive impact on affected restaurants."

Nando's hopes that all of its restaurants should be open again from this Saturday.

Nando's website

Images: Google Maps

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News: Rotherham Nando's to open later this year

Popular flame-grilled peri-peri chicken specialists, Nando's, is set to open its first outlet in Rotherham later this year.

A planning application was approved in the Summer for a new restaurant at Parkgate Shopping, which was recently ranked as the fifth best retail park in the UK, attracting an estimated 9.3 million visitors a year.

The plans, drawn up by Archial Norr and Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners, involve the demolition of the current Pizza Hut restaurant to be replaced by a new building to include a 372 sq m, 128 cover Nando's and a 93 sq m Subway. The new building would also include a cash machine and new toilet facilities. The proposal is for "a very modest uplift" in floorspace of just 250 sq m.

The park owners, British Land, together with potential operators and visitors have all shown an interest in an improved food and drink offer at Parkgate. A 377 sq m Frankie & Benny's restaurant opened in 2012 to complement to the existing instore cafés and fast food outlets.

This month saw Pizza Hut close its doors after 25 years on the park, serving an estimated five million pizzas. Manager Martin Jowett will be managing a Pizza Hut branch in Lincoln, and other staff have been relocated to Pizza Hut outlets in South Yorkshire.

Denis Copeland, manager at Parkgate Shopping (pictured back, right), said: "Pizza Hut has served local people very well over many years and will be missed. We wish all the staff very well in their new jobs, and look forward to welcoming Nando's when it opens later in the year."

Founded in South Africa in 1987, Nando's operates a casual dining restaurant group with 1,000 outlets specialising in chicken with influences from Portugal and South Africa.


The first UK restaurant opened in 1992 and there are now over 340 restaurants in the UK. Nando's Group Holdings, which runs the chain in the UK and Ireland, says that it serves half a million chickens a week and wants to add around 30 new restaurants a year. Ultimately owned by South African tycoon Richard Enthoven and Capricorn Ventures International, latest UK sales figures are a reported £535m for the year ending in February 2014. An outlet at Doncaster's Lakeside opened earlier this month.

Nando's website
Parkgate Shopping website

Images: Nando's / Archial Norr / Parkgate Shopping

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News: Plans passed for Rotherham Nando's

A planning application for a new Nando's restaurant in Rotherham has been granted.

Rothbiz revealed in May that the popular flame-grilled peri-peri chicken specialists were planning to take space at Parkgate Shopping as part of a redevelopment.


The plans, drawn up by Archial Norr and Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners, involve the demolition of the current Pizza Hut restaurant to be replaced by a new building to include a 372 sq m, 128 cover Nando's and a 93 sq m Subway. The new building would also include a cash machine and new toilet facilities. The proposal is for "a very modest uplift" in floorspace of just 250 sq m.

The park owners, British Land, together with potential operators and visitors have all shown an interest in an improved food and drink offer at Parkgate. A 377 sq m Frankie & Benny's restaurant opened in 2012 to complement to the existing instore cafés and fast food outlets.

National planning policies are designed to protect town centres and focus retail and leisure uses there.

In 2011, Rotherham planners recommended that the Frankie & Benny's proposal at Parkgate be refused believing that it would be a destination in its own right and would divert trade, investment and expenditure away from Rotherham town centre. It also concluded that there were preferable sites for a restaurant in the town centre.

However, the application was resubmitted including an agreement for a £130,000 contribution to be used by the council on a range of initiatives to improve the vitality and viability of Rotherham town centre.

Planning permission for the development was granted, without being taken to the planning board, in February 2012.

The Nando's application has also been approved by planners without being taken to the planning board.

The officer's report states that the further development of Parkgate "prejudices the vitality and viability of the town centre and future investment" and that "further expansion with uses that could be located in Rotherham town centre should therefore be resisted."

However, the planners add that "no evidence exists to demonstrate that the proposed development would have a significant adverse effect on the town centre."

Sequential tests ensure that development is located in the most sustainable location first (usually in town centres), before other, less sustainable locations are chosen. In this case, the applicants have discounted a number of sites in the town centre including the Old Market and Keppel Wharf buildings.

The Keppel Wharf unit, designed specifically for a restaurant, was discounted by the applicants who said that "on the ground floor there is a 312 sq m unit that is now occupied by health food store and is therefore no longer available."

The planning department agreed, despite this not actually being the case. Vitalife's health store opened in March in the 55 sq m Unit 1 at Keppel Wharf, leaving the 471 sq m Unit 2, complete with terrace on the river, still available.

Nando's website
Parkgate Shopping website

Images: Nando's / Archial Norr

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News: Nando's set to open in Rotherham

Leading restaurant chain, Nando's is planning to open a new restaurant in Rotherham.

Favoured by the likes of David Beckham, Beyoncé and students, the popular chain's specialisation is flame-grilled peri-peri chicken. With aims to open at 25 new sites every year, each employing around 30 staff, a planning application has now been submitted for a new outlet at Parkgate Shopping.

Owned by Hercules Unit Trust, which is advised by British Land and managed by Schroders, Parkgate Shopping is one of the largest retail parks in the UK, home to over 40 shops and attracting around 150,000 visitors a week. It is valued at over £100m to the trust via a subsidiary, the Rotherham Unit Trust.

Founded in South Africa in 1987, Nando's operates a casual dining restaurant group with 1,000 outlets. The first UK restaurant opened in 1992 and there are now over 280 restaurants in the UK. The UK arm of Nando's says that it serves half a million chickens a week. Owned by Capricorn Ventures International, latest sales figures are a reported £485m and profits in 2013 rose to £58.5m. Current local restaurants are in Sheffield, with one planned for Doncaster Leisure Park.

The latest plans, drawn up by Archial Norr and Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners, would involve the demolition of the current Pizza Hut restaurant to be replaced by a new building to include a 372 sq m, 128 cover Nando's and a 93 sq m Subway. The new building would also include a cash machine and new toilet facilities.

The park owners, potential operators and visitors have all shown an interest in an improved food and drink offer at Parkgate. A 377 sq m Frankie & Benny's restaurant opened in 2012 to complement to the existing instore cafés and fast food outlets. Britain's number one seller of sandwiches, Subway, opened an outlet at Parkgate in 2008 but it didn't last long.

The new application will need to be approved by the council's planning department who are guided by national planning policies designed to protect town centres and focus retail and leisure uses there. The application states that, as the proposal is "a very modest uplift" in floorspace of just 250 sq m, it will have no material impact on the restaurant sector within the town centre and no noticeable impact on the vitality and viability of the centre as a whole.

Sequential tests ensure that development is located in the most sustainable location first (usually in town centres), before other, less sustainable locations are chosen. In this case, the applicants have discounted a number of sites in the town centre including the Old Market and Keppel Wharf buildings.

The applicants also make reference to the recent approval for an out of town retail development at Great Eastern Way and the £30m extension to Cortonwood that was approved on appeal last year.

In 2011, Rotherham planners recommended that the Frankie & Benny's proposal at Parkgate be refused believing that it would be a destination in its own right and would divert trade, investment and expenditure away from Rotherham town centre. It also concluded that there were preferable sites for a restaurant in the town centre.

However, the application was resubmitted including an agreement for a £130,000 contribution to be used by the council on a range of initiatives to improve the vitality and viability of Rotherham town centre.

Planning permission for the development was granted, without being taken to the planning board, in February 2012.

Nando's website
Parkgate Shopping website

Images: Nando's / Archial Norr

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