Established fish & chip shop with restaurant, central Baldock

Key features

• £6,000–£7,000 weekly turnover, fully staff-run
• Same ownership for 20 years, genuine retirement sale
• Grade II listed town-centre premises with 26-cover restaurant
• Counter trade only — no home delivery currently offered
• Closes 9.00pm latest, with scope for extra sessions

About this business

A fully staff-run fish & chip takeaway with a 26-cover restaurant in the centre of Baldock, a popular historic market town in north Hertfordshire. The business has been in the same hands for 20 years and currently turns over £6,000 to £7,000 a week across just 5.5 days, closing 9.00pm at the latest with no home delivery. A genuine retirement sale, with clear and obvious upside for an owner-operator willing to add deliveries and extra sessions.

Trading figures

Weekly turnover currently sits between £6,000 and £7,000, achieved across just 5.5 days a week, closing 9.00pm at the latest, and entirely from counter trade — no deliveries are undertaken. The shop is completely management/staff run, so the figures are being delivered without an owner on the floor. Under direct owner control, with the obvious additions of a delivery service and extra openings, turnover can comfortably be increased.

Trading hours

Monday: 4.00pm – 9.00pm. Tuesday to Saturday: 11.15am – 2.00pm and 4.00pm – 9.00pm. Sunday: closed. There is clear potential for additional openings.

Business premises

A very wide Grade II listed premises with a frontage full of character — half-glazed with double bay windows and a central entrance, sitting under a coloured fascia lit by four spotlights. Inside, the sales shop has tiled flooring, panelled and beamed painted walls, and a mix of strip and inset lighting, with a 26-cover restaurant section laid out with wooden tables and chairs. The 3-pan Preston & Thomas counter range encloses the frying and serving bay, opening onto a fully tiled preparation area with a cooking section under an overhead extractor, twin stainless-steel sink, work tables and shelving. A separate fully tiled potato room sits off to the side, with its own access to a driveway and storage shed used for deliveries to the front. A new water boiler and new ducting have been installed within the last few years. The premises would benefit from some updating.

Trade equipment

The hero piece is a 3-pan Preston & Thomas counter range fronting the frying bay. Also included: a digital till, 4-pot bain-marie, two microwave ovens, cooking range, pressure fryer, CCTV system, stainless-steel fish keeper, numerous fridges and freezers, gas cooker, plus a chipper and peeler with a spare of each. A full inventory will be available prior to completion. (Items have not been tested by Rosens — buyers should commission an independent inspection.)

Accommodation

Lock-up shop — no residential accommodation is included in the sale.

Trading position

Well established in the centre of a popular historic market town in north Hertfordshire, with rapid links to surrounding towns and villages and a good-sized local population that supports steady year-round trade. The town-centre pitch sits among other shops and offices, generating consistent passing trade, and the surrounding free parking removes the usual friction for a takeaway customer.

Special remarks

The seller bought the shop in 2005 and, after 20 years at the helm, is now looking forward to retirement — a genuine sale leaving the way clear for more go-ahead ownership. The shop is currently management/staff run, closes 9.00pm at the latest, and offers no home delivery, so the levers for an incoming owner-operator are immediate and obvious: introduce a delivery service into a town where demand is strong, extend the trading sessions, and bring the hands-on attention that a fully-staffed operation cannot. Inspection will confirm both the standard of the premises and the genuine nature of the sale.