Theatre of Wine in Leytonstone, east London, will close at the end of March.
Directors Daniel and Tom Illsley have taken the view not to renew the lease on the Leytonstone High Road premises, citing tough trading conditions.
“Things are not looking rosy for the drinks trade,” says Daniel. “First the Tories impose the most onerous duty system imaginable and then Labour hike National Insurance and business rates.
“Small businesses were once the lifeblood of the UK but it’s increasingly a fool’s errand. The message from the government is join Amazon.”
The company, founded by Daniel in 2002, has two other sites: the original store in Greenwich and the second, which opened in 2011, in Tufnell Park. Theatre of Wine also continues to grow its portfolio of direct imports.
Daniel’s son Tom Ilsley says: “We are focused on supporting our existing retail shops and driving our wholesale and on-trade division, which is thriving. We have no intention of slowing down. Quite the opposite.”