Cancún Loses 20 Restaurants So Far This Year, Industry Group Says

Cancún, Quintana Roo — Cancún has lost at least 20 restaurants so far this year, and the local restaurant industry chamber expects another five or six to shut down before the year ends, the organization reported. Most of the closures are permanent, since temporary suspensions of operations are rare in the sector.

The closures have hit locations across the destination, including the Hotel Zone, downtown Cancún, Isla Mujeres and Puerto Morelos. Those affected range from small fast-food outlets to Chinese restaurants, indicating the trend has not spared any size or specialty.

By contrast, the chamber counted between 10 and 12 new restaurant openings over the same period — not enough to offset the losses. A single small restaurant can support at least 15 direct jobs across kitchen, floor, service and administrative staff, so each closure means the direct loss of jobs in the city.

Shutting down a restaurant is not free for its owner either. Dismantling the premises, paying severance to staff and handing back the property can add up to more than 30,000 pesos, on top of the loss of the original investment.

“Most of the closures are permanent, because temporary closures are uncommon in this sector,” said Perla Flores Navarro, president of Canirac Cancún.

The organization attributes part of the pressure to steadily rising input costs, which have forced restaurateurs to adjust their operating expenses to avoid raising menu prices for diners.

To that end, Canirac Cancún has held meetings with municipal and state authorities to propose tax incentives for next year. Among its requests is that the next revenue package avoid sharp increases in taxes and fees, which the group argues the sector is not in a position to absorb in the short term.

With the rest of the year ahead, restaurant owners will begin preparations in October for the year-end high season, when reservations start coming in and which represents one of the sector’s most important recovery windows in Cancún.