Hooters closing underperforming restaurants due to 'current market conditions'

Hooters announced several "underperforming" restaurants will close their doors permanently.

A "select number" of restaurants will shutdown due to "pressure from current market conditions," the chain said in a statement to USA TODAY Monday.

"Ensuring the well-being of our staff is our priority in these rare instances," the statement reads. "This brand of 41 years remains highly resilient and relevant. We look forward to continuing to serve our guests at home, on the go and at our restaurants here in the U.S. and around the globe."

The company did not clarify which locations will shutdown or share a timeline for the closures, but reporters around the nation with the USA TODAY Network found dozens of Hooters restaurants shuttered on Monday, including in Florida, Texas, Kentucky and Indiana.

Hooters had 293 locations

The chain said they are continuing to open locations domestically and internationally while launching Hooters frozen products at grocery stores.

Technomic Ignite shows that Hooters had 293 restaurants by the end of 2023, a 1.3% decrease from 2022, Nations Restaurant News reported.

The company has experienced a 12% decline since the end of 2018, when there were 333 Hooters locations, per NRN.

Red Lobster, Rubio’s Coastal Grill also close spots

The announcement comes as other restaurant chains face mass closures.

Earlier this month, Red Lobster was unable to renegotiate their leases, according to bankruptcy documents, after the company's website listed 99 closures across 28 states in May.

The company listed 228 rejected leases it says will keep losing money if they continue operating as they currently are. The list of restaurants includes at least some of the restaurants it has already closed, according to RNN. Some Red Lobster locations had their equipment auctioned off via an online restaurant liquidator putting an additional 129 restaurants at risk of shutting down.

Rubio’s Coastal Grill also closed 48 "underperforming" Mexican grill restaurants across California this month, NRN reported. By the end of 2023, about 33% of chain restaurants had less locations than they started the year with.

Contributing: Gabe Hauari