Karen’s Diner’s closure isn’t a mystery, it’s marketing

The identical firm is opening a brand new idea in the identical house subsequent week. Sorry to be a buzzkill.

The primary article popped up on CityMag’s social media feed on Sunday:

Karen’s Diner Has Instantly Shut 3 Of Its Aussie Eating places & The Timing Is… Fascinating

Popular culture web site Pedestrian reported that Karen’s Diner, the “drawback youngster of the Australian hospitality business” (Pedestrian’s phrases), had shut three of its pop-up shops – particularly, in Surfers Paradise, Perth and Melbourne.

A number of hours later, the information popped up in our feed once more, this time through The Undertaking.

The next days introduced extra posts of the identical story from 10 Information First Perth, Melbourne and Queensland, in addition to 7NEWS Gold Coast and, we’re positive, a handful of different retailers.

Spurred on, we assume, by all this virality, Adelaide’s personal The Advertiser was prompted on Tuesday to go and examine the native Karen’s Diner, on East Terrace, and located:

Notorious Karen’s Diner in Adelaide seems to be closed after interstate areas shut doorways

The tales recounted not solely the Karen’s Diner closures, but in addition the controversies the chain had gathered throughout its time in operation – together with cases of employees allegedly struggling varied types of office abuse.

Some additionally reported that the mother or father firm behind Karen’s Diner, Viral Ventures (Australia) Pty Ltd, had gone into liquidation.

Most of this information is no surprise.

Pop-up eating places operated by a enterprise with ‘viral’ within the title are clearly supposed to be short-term ideas. Karen’s closure was at all times deliberate.

Viral Ventures has been working the house at 6 East Terrace a while, internet hosting a cavalcade of unusual and generally intriguing eating and consuming experiences.

The Viral Group web site lists some experiences on its web site that is likely to be acquainted to out-and-about Adelaideans: Karen’s Diner, The Alice (with an Alice in Wonderland theme), and Mad Hatter’s Tea Celebration (with a barely completely different Alice in Wonderland Theme).

The East Terrace location has additionally hosted Pitch Black, a eating at midnight idea; The Magical World of Teletubbies (an I-don’t-really-know idea); and Abba-, Grease-, Britney Spears drag-, Harry Potter-, and Harry Kinds-themed occasions.

As a brand new spherical of social media posts about Karen’s supposed demise hit our social media feeds, a press launch dropped into CityMag’s inbox:

You Have Been Summoned To The Wizard’s Den

A brand new bar, quickly to open at 6 East Terrace.

The place would possibly one discover some extra data on The Wizard’s Den? viralgroupglobal.com.

The timing of Karen’s Diner’s winding up shouldn’t be so stunning in any case.

A stunning ingredient of this story is the pop-up eating idea’s persevering with presence within the CBD following Viral Ventures (Australia)’s liquidation.

Viral Ventures co-founder Aden Levin instructed Enterprise New Australia he had “closed a couple of of the shops as famous and liquidated that subsidiary entity” however “the opposite group entities operating occasions and a few venues will proceed buying and selling as regular, in addition to the abroad operation”.

CityMag shot off a fast e mail to the PR firm asking who could be working The Wizard’s Den when it opens subsequent week, they usually confirmed it will be The Viral Group, moderately than the liquidated Viral Ventures (Australia).

As for the way a limited-time eating idea gathered a lot consideration for closing down because it was at all times supposed to do, we are able to solely commend Viral Ventures and Viral Group on understanding find out how to do their job.

The Wizard’s Den is operating at 6 East Terrace, Adelaide from Thursday, 15 June. The bar will host two wizard-themed cocktail-making classes every day from Thursday to Sunday.

To buy a ticket, head right here.