Yahoo News Plymouth nightclub has shut for good and is for sale
Plymouth’s award-winning double nightspot Switch and Air has closed after a decade and the premises are on sale for £600,000. The boss of the North Hill clubs, Marcus Lewis, said rampant inflation and a decline in student trade had eaten into profits and the business had not recovered since the Covid lockdowns.
The lease for Switch is on sale at £150,000. Meanwhile, the freehold for next door Air is on offer at £450,000. But the outdoor venue will reopen temporarily from this weekend as a pop-up run by Jordan Turfrey as an extension of his successful Plates restaurant, also neighbouring Switch.
Mr Lewis said: “It’s up for sale, we’ve decided to call it a day, the market has completely changed, it’s very difficult. Covid ruined everything and we’ve got the backlash of that at the moment.
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“It’s extremely sad,” he added. “It’s 10 years of my life in that place.”
Mr Lewis bought what was then called Bang Bang in 2015 and changed its name to Switch. It was a huge success and went on to win the Best Late Night Venue honour at the 2018 Best Bar None awards.
It was a money spinner too - until the Covid pandemic struck in 2020. Mr Lewis said: “Before Covid we were running a profit margin of just short of 30%, but before we closed it was 7%.”
Mr Lewis said the business was hit by rising costs, including for energy, and a decline in the once lucrative student market. He said: “The student market has changed. The bank of mum and dad has gone, everyone is struggling out there.
“And they are never going to reduce prices to pre-Covid times. The cost of goods is not going to go down, but there is only so much you can charge for a craft beer.”
Switch, with its 220 capacity over two floors, is now permanently closed. The 200sq m Air will resurface as a food venue this weekend while Mr Lewis sells the freehold.
“Plates is smashing it, Jordan is doing a cracking job,” he said. “He is going to take Air over as a pop-up doing Plates food.
“It’s reopening this weekend for the bank holiday and will be a great place. Air will have a great atmosphere But Switch has closed and won’t be reopening until someone buys the lease.”
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