‘Too bad’ are moaning punters, as the pub chain with 400 drinks outlets will have to close its branch within a few weeks

PUNTERS have been gutted after a major pub chain with 400 locations prepares to close one of its off-licences within weeks.

The pub in Reading will close its shutters on March 31 in a major blow to locals.

The Narrowboat, run by Fuller’s, Smith and Turner chain, will welcome customers for the final time later this month.

A spokesperson for the chain said the pub in its current form is “currently not viable” and will be turned into a training center for the chefs and food development team.

They added: “This dedicated facility will benefit our teams, help us create and perfect great dishes for our menus and give us a fantastic center to develop our chefs of the future.

“We are sorry to disappoint the customers who have become valued regulars of The Narrowboat, but we believe this is the right course of action for the long-term success of the site.”

Locals and punters have taken to online to share their devastation at the news the pub will close, described as “stunning” by one person on Google Reviews.

One simply said: “Oh bloody hell”.

Another said: “Shame it’s closing as it’s a good location”, while another added: “Oh no! That’s a shame we were hoping to go there”.

Meanwhile, a fifth added: “Shame it’s closing as it’s a good location.”

It comes as hundreds of pubs across Britain are closing their doors as they battle cost pressures.

More than 500 British drinkers will close their doors for the last time in 2023, The Sun exclusively revealed in January.

Six thousand people also lost their jobs, with pub chefs blaming the losses and closures on rising commodity prices, energy bills and a heavy tax burden.

A shock poll conducted across Britain by Survation and shared exclusively with The Sun last month also shows that more than 7,000 pubs could go bankrupt in the coming year.

In October last year, Wetherspoon’s boss Tim Martin said the company was “performing well”.

But the chain has closed 44 pubs in the past two years, almost six of which were up for sale.

Stonegate, the group that runs Yate’s and Slug and Lettuce pubs, also sparked outrage last year by increasing the price of drinks from 5pm to 7pm to offset rising operational costs.

High street retailers are also being hit hard.

Supermarkets such as Lidl, Iceland and Tesco have closed branches since the beginning of 2023.

Meanwhile, retailers such as Poundstretcher, Argos and House of Fraser have also closed their own stores.

Keep in mind that retailers often close and open branches to balance their portfolio.

Other retailers have been hit hard, with Wilko, Paperchase and The Body Shop all in trouble since last year.

All told, thousands of employees have lost their jobs and hundreds of stores have closed across the UK.

And in June last year, pharmacy chain Boots said it would consolidate its portfolio of 2,200 stores to 1,900.

But it’s not all doom and gloom in the sector as a number of retailers are also opening stores.

Asda is opening hundreds of smaller convenience stores as it looks to compete with major players Tesco and Sainsbury’s.

Meanwhile, Lidl wants to open twelve new stores in the United Kingdom, with branches in Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester and Reading.

Costa Coffee will also open 11 concession branches in larger Sainsbury’s stores by 2024.

Wilko has also been relaunched on the high street under new ownership, including in Plymouth, Exeter and Luton.

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