Last Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants to close, with loss of 3,800 jobs, Premier Inn owner says
Summary
Whitbread, the owner of Premier Inn, plans to close all its Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants, cutting around 3,800 jobs in the UK and Ireland as part of a new five-year business plan. The company will focus only on hotels, converting some restaurant spaces into hotel rooms and selling and leasing back some properties to support future growth.Key Facts
- Whitbread will cut about 3,800 jobs, which is 12% of its workforce in the UK and Ireland.
- The closures affect the Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants, often next to Premier Inn hotels.
- Whitbread plans to convert many restaurant spaces into hotel rooms to increase profitability.
- The company will sell and lease back £1.5 billion of its property to fund growth.
- Whitbread owns many of its hotels but intends to lease more going forward.
- Rising costs, including higher taxes and wages, have pressured Whitbread’s business.
- An American investor, Corvex, bought a 6.05% stake and pushed Whitbread to change strategy.
- Whitbread’s revenue stayed about the same as the previous year, but its share price has dropped recently.
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