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Restaurant companies in the Chelmsford area

476 restaurant companies have a registered office in the Chelmsford area (CM postcodes), and 148 of them were formed in 2025 or 2026. In their latest accounts, the typical one held £21,605 in cash and owed £57,548 at year end.

Companies House register, 1 September 2026, and accounts filed in the last twelve months. Compared with the official category “Licenced restaurants” (SIC 56101). Covers companies with a registered office in CM postcodes, including Chelmsford, Harlow.

The numbers

Restaurant companies in the Chelmsford area (CM postcodes) compared with the same category across the UK. Typical figures are medians.
MeasureChelmsfordUK
Registered companies47654,142
Formed in 2025 or 2026148 (31%)27%
Being struck off or in liquidation90 (19%)21%
Typical cash at year end£21,60595 accounts£23,201
Typical amount owed at year end£57,548206 accounts£62,010
Typical number of employees5208 accounts6

What this means if you’re starting one

More of these companies are closing than in most trades

14% of restaurant companies in the Chelmsford area (CM postcodes) are currently being struck off, against 6.6% of all companies there. Nationally that rate is higher than 96% of UK industries.

Closures run high here. It is a churn signal, not a survival rate, but it means the common failure points are worth learning before you start.

Most of your competition will be other newcomers

31% of the 476 restaurant companies in the Chelmsford area (CM postcodes) were formed in 2025–26, against 19% of all companies in the Chelmsford area (CM postcodes). Nationally, that share of new companies is higher than 80% of UK industries.

New rivals are arriving faster than in most trades, so your customers already have fresh options. Being new is not a difference on its own.

Cash is tight in this trade

At year end the typical restaurant company in the Chelmsford area (CM postcodes) holds £21,605 in cash and owes £57,548; that cash figure is lower than 54% of UK industries.

Typical operators end the year holding less cash than they owe, so there is little slack if takings dip or a big bill lands early.

Planning a business like this in Chelmsford?

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What these figures can’t tell you

Companies are counted where their registered office is, which may be an accountant or a home address rather than a shop. Sole traders and partnerships are not on the register, and electronically filed accounts cover roughly 60–75% of accounts filed each year. The figures describe companies that exist; they cannot prove demand for your idea or predict whether it will work. How the figures are built.

Restaurant in other places

Other businesses in Chelmsford

All business benchmarks in Chelmsford