Towards the end of last month it was reported that more than ten jobs are at risk at a high-profile English distillery.
On Friday 24th April, Lakes Distillery in Cumbria announced that they were ceasing tours at the distillery after closing the brand home. The visitor centre also included a bistro and retail space. As such, it has been estimated that 15 jobs will be cut.
Lakes Distillery was founded in 2014 and quickly grew in status to become one of the most prominent single malt producers in England. In 2024, the distillery was acquired by England’s largest sparkling wine maker Nyetimber in a deal believed to be worth £71 million.
Despite the distillery’s reputation as one of the most celebrated English whisky makers, Lakes was facing financial difficulties before the Nyetimber take over. The firm reported an audited loss of £1.3m (US$1.6m) in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation for the year ending 30 June 2023.
Nyetimber released the following statement regarding the closure at Lakes Distillery: “The financial realities of running the brand home have become increasingly challenging, with factors such as rising cost-of-living, consumer spending habits and broader commercial pressures all having an impact.
“Financially subsidising this part of the business has been diverting funds away from the core financial objectives and growth plans for The Lakes, and as a result, the difficult decision has been made to close the shop and the bistro and stop offering distillery tours. Sadly, this has also resulted in job losses for a number of valued staff.
“The Nyetimber Group will also be carefully considering how The Lakes site can best support its ambitious, strategic goals, which will be shared at an appropriate time.”
At the time of writing, it has not been confirmed if there are plans to reopen the visitor centre in the future. However, production will be unaffected by these cuts and the distillery will continue to operate on its current schedule.
