Britain’s oldest Casino rolls dice for last time as high end tourists ditch London
Britain’s oldest casino has been forced to close its doors after failing to attract high-end tourists to the infamous London haunt.
Crockfords Casino, which was once a hotspot for the royal and aristocratic visitors to the capital, will close after 195 years, according to reports in The Daily Mail.
It follows a consultation process about the company’s future which was launched by bosses last month.
Employees at the £80m casino, which is owned by gaming group Genting, now face redundancy or may be shuffled to other sites owned by the group.
Paul Willcock, the president of Genting Casinos UK, told the outlet that there is a “combination” of factors which have put high-end London casinos at a competitive disadvantage to other global marketplaces.
“This has led to an unsustainable future for Crockfords in Mayfair,” he said.
It comes amid cries for some of London’s most luxury brands to reinstate VAT-free shopping for tourists, as cash-rich shoppers continue to choose Italy or Spain for shopping holidays.
Many high street retailers, including Mulberry and Watches of Switzerland, have called for the tax relief scheme to be reinstated — after it was scrapped by Rishi Sunak two years ago — when he was Chancellor.
The move to scrap the VAT-free shopping scheme has since been dubbed the ‘tourist tax‘.
City A.M. has contacted Gentings for a comment.