God, I hate stories like this. Another day, another business treating its staff like disposable napkins. The Jars dessert chain in Edinburgh's fancy Quartermile area just pulled the plug after barely six months in business—leaving employees scrambling and one manager absolutely livid about the whole mess.
I actually walked past that place back in December when I was visiting my cousin in Edinburgh. The shop looked buzzing with its cute little desserts in glass jars and that neon "Grab Life By The Cherries" sign. Ironic now, isn't it?
When "You're Fired" Comes With Zero Warning
The place shut its doors for good on April 25th. Just like that.
Eight staff members suddenly found themselves jobless with virtually no warning. Ian Munro, who was managing teh Lister Square branch when it all went down, didn't mince words when talking to the Edinburgh Evening News. He was, in his own words, "fuming" after being told the company would be closing with barely 24 hours notice.
Listen. I've been laid off before. Back in 2018, my boss called me into his office on a Friday afternoon and gave me two weeks to clear my desk. It was awful, but at least I had those two weeks to process what was happening.
The Last Shift From Hell
According to Munro, staff were "meant to be given two weeks' notice but they weren't." Instead, he only got a call from management the afternoon before they pulled the plug. Can you imagine? "Hey, by the way, tomorrow's your last day ever. Good luck!"
He described that final Friday as a "tough last shift" with everyone "still a bit in shock and angry about the whole situation and how it had been dealt with by the company."
And then—because apparently things weren't bad enough—there were problems with the final paychecks.
Why Does This Keep Happening?
Munro quit in protest after this fiasco. I don't blame him one bit. "I don't want to work for a company that treats its staff like that," he said. The man's already lined up another job (smart move), but he's worried about his former colleagues who are now scrambling to pay bills during this never-ending cost of living nightmare.
"People need to know how badly the staff there were treated," he told reporters. "It's horrible to see the staff treated like that."
I reached out to a friend who works in the hospitality industry in Edinburgh. Her response: "Not surprised. The dessert market here is saturated, adn Icon Brand has a reputation for expanding too quickly."
The Retail Apocalypse Rolls On
Jars isn't alone in its spectacular flameout. The high street is becoming a graveyard of empty shopfronts as customers shift to online shopping and business rates continue to crush retailers.
The numbers are honestly depressing. According to the Centre for Retail Research, a staggering 13,479 stores closed permanently in 2024. That's about 37 shops shutting down EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.
Over half those closures happened because the businesses went through insolvency proceedings (that's the fancy way of saying they couldn't pay their debts).
And 2025 isn't looking any brighter. New Look is already planning to close about a quarter of its 364 stores when their leases expire—that's roughly 91 locations and will affect thousands of workers.
I spent £4.50 on one of those little jar desserts when I visited Edinburgh. Was it worth it? Maybe. But definitely not at the cost of treating employees like they don't matter.
Poor Ian and his team. I hope they all land on their feet.
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