The opening of a third Hooters restaurant and bar in the UK has been delayed due to complex negotiations. For years Nottingham was the only Hooters in the UK, but was joined by the Liverpool location in November 2022 and will soon become one of three in the country as the third location is expected to open in Salford.
According to the boss behind the Hooters restaurant and bar, it could be the middle or end of 2023 before its outlet in Salford Quays can open. Julian Mills, has run the Nottingham Hooters for the last 21 years reports Manchester Evening News.
He has described negotiations with the landlord of 3 Capital Quay as "coming to an end" and stated he was "‘confident" the new Hooters bar would open some time this year. The licence for Hooters was granted by Salford city council in June despite 91 objections, including from Male Allies Challenging Sexism, the Women’s Equality Party, Yes Matters, FiLia, Womanchester and GM4 Women.
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There was also opposition from its own mayor Paul Dennett, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and MPs Rebecca Long-Bailey and Barbara Keeley. Mr Mills told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “We thought getting the licence would be much more difficult than getting the deal done with the landlord, but it has been the other way round.
“It’s no-one’s fault that it’s taken so long, but we are hoping to get it done within the next three or four weeks. It’s a bit like buying a house, but multiplied by a factor of 50, in terms of the complexity of the negotiations.”
As Hooters operates on a franchise business model, similar to Burger King and McDonald’s, the Salford Hooters will not be run the same way as the Liverpool Hooters, with both restaurants being "unconnected." Mr Mills said that once the agreement with the landlord was signed and finalised with "boots on the ground" it would only take four to five months to launch the business.
He said: "We are intending to employ between 50 and 60 people, but we haven’t advertised yet because we don’t know exactly when we are opening." At the time the licence for Hooters was granted, chairman of the licensing panel, Coin John Warmisham, said the city council was "required by law to process a premises licence application".
He explained: “The process is set out in legislation and government guidance. The decision to grant or refuse a premises licence application or the imposition of any conditions must be within the parameters of the licensing objectives. Opinion and personal choice are not relevant or legitimate reasons to refuse an application.”
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