The company’s The Prince Regent and The Grand Duchess will both close ‘for the foreseeable future’. The Grand Duchess boat will have its last service on 28 September while The Prince Regent will continue to cruise until 13 October.
In a statement that bade farewell to its customers, referred to as ‘discerning sailors’ the team says: “For almost nine years we’ve floated, sailed and served.
“Feasting on the water. Substantial increases in maintenance and overhead costs combined with turbulent trading conditions have made this decision inevitable.
“We can’t change the wind, but we can adjust the sails.
The group’s focus will now be on ‘landlubber activities’, including its Swain’s Lane fishmonger site, which opened in March last year.
“Swain’s Lane continues to go from strength to strength and we’re looking forward to developing this concept and seeing where the next adventure takes us,” say the founders.
London Shell Co was founded in 2016 by siblings Harry and Leah Lobek and Stuart Kilpatrick. The Grand Duchess is a 40-capacity barge with outside seating that launched in 2019 and which is permanently docked next to London Shell’s cruising restaurant boat The Prince Regent.
“It’s been an honour. The biggest trip of our lives, the greatest thing any of us have achieved in our still fledgling careers,” they add.
“But most importantly, it’s been a boat load of fun. We raise a glass to you and to everyone that has ever clambered aboard these vessels.”