Craig Cook The Natural Butcher forced to close in Westfield Bondi Junction

A popular butcher that has been crowned the best in Sydney has been forced to close after a Westfield shopping centre chose not to renew its lease.

Craig Cook The Natural Butcher has been trading in Westfield Bondi Junction, in the city’s east, for nine years and recently shocked customers with the announcement of its closure.

The beloved butcher was crowned the best in the city by Australia Business News in February and will now be replaced by another meat supplier, Vic’s Meat.

In a lengthy post to LinkedIn, Craig Cook said small to medium businesses relied on longevities of leases in shopping centres to make up for the extensive costs of running their stores.

‘This is where the issue lies, and the shopping centres have all the power!’ the butcher said.

‘One of our prime locations is Bondi Junction and recently we were told by the powers that be that they would not be renewing our lease. 

‘Craig Cook has been the definition of an ideal tenant, trading for 8 years in the centre, always paying rent on time, producing an excellent trading record, plus, maintaining a beautiful store with regular upgrades to facilities and shop fit outs. 

‘Even throughout COVID, in very trying times, Craig Cook was the perfect tenant.’

The butcher was crowned the best in the city by Australia Business News in February and will now be replaced by another meat supplier, Vic’s Meat

The butcher warned that no business was safe, adding they’d since been left with a ‘huge’ bill to move out and remove their shop fittings.

‘Our wonderful customers now have no option but to either shop with us online or travel to Broadway, our nearest location,’ the butcher continued.

‘The law in NSW must change! In some other states, you are at least given the first right of refusal, and that should be the same case here. 

‘If you have done everything right and committed to a store in a shopping centre, how fair is it that they can literally pull the floor out from underneath you?

‘Under the current laws, no business is safe!’

Mr Cook told Daily Mail Australia his Bondi Junction business made roughly $3million a year.

‘It’s a $3million loss and now we’ve got to spend $85,000 to redo the shop and render the walls for the next business,’ he said.

‘If I was a small business owner this would destroy my livelihood.’

Mr Cook, who owns 11 other butchers across Sydney and Newcastle, said he was never approached by Scentre Group, which owns Westfield, about the lease not being extended and was only told by his leasing agent.

He said no discussions or consultations were had. 

He spent $1million renovating the store when they first moved in which will also now go down the drain.

Mr Cook said he didn’t know why Vic’s Meat had been chosen to move in, adding his business had always obliged to rent increases and received no help during the pandemic.

It’s understood Vic’s Meat will be paying the same rent as Craig Cook did. 

‘I just don’t know how they (Scentre Group) can justify it,’ Mr Cook said.

‘Thanks for nothing Westfield.

‘We asked the Board to explain what’s going on but we were palmed off. It’d be different if it was something like a lolly shop coming in.’

Staff at the Bondi Junction store have been retained to other franchises.

‘But I can’t put them near where they live so it’s inconvenienced them too,’ Mr Cook said.

The business owner has since engaged with the National Retail Association to lobby for legislation to be changed to protect tenants. 

‘I never thought this would happen but it did so now I want to help mums and dads who run small businesses who may be a risk of losing their livelihoods,’ he said.

In South Australia and Western Australia, tenants have a right to refusal if a lease is not being continued as long as they haven’t breached the lease term.

More than 15,000 people signed a petition to keep Craig Cook in Bondi Junction. 

The butcher warned that no business was safe, adding they’d since been left with a ‘huge’ bill to move out and remove their shop fittings

Westfield is ran by Scentre Group which said in a statement the butcher’s lease had expired in September last year and they had allowed them to continue trading.

‘Demand for space at Westfield Bondi is high and retailers are actively presenting new and exciting concepts to us,’ a Scentre Group spokesperson said.

‘Our team are focused on curating the best retail and experiences to meet the changing demands of our customers.

‘We have plans for the next evolution of Westfield Bondi which includes introducing elevated health and wellness and dining experiences.’