Black Friday? Cafes, restaurants charge towards black hole

Cafes and restaurants are charging towards a black hole of discretionary spending with almost seven in 100 closing, failing or collapsing into administration in the past year, according to CreditorWatch.

The credit bureau’s economist Anneke Thompson said the discretionary retail sector was enjoying a temporary reprieve with the Black Friday sales but there was no such luck for hospitality, which was well ahead of other sectors when it came to company exits.

“Business failures include ASIC strike-offs – so that's external administrations plus businesses voluntarily closing or closing for whatever reason – it's . . .