Whitbread, the owner of Premier Inn, has announced the closure of its remaining Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants, resulting in approximately 3,800 job losses across the UK and Ireland. The company cited higher costs and tax increases as the primary reasons for this strategic reset.
Details of the Cuts
The job cuts represent about 12% of Whitbread's 30,000-strong workforce in the UK and Ireland. Affected employees work in Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants, which are typically located adjacent to or within Premier Inn hotels. Consultations with staff will commence immediately, and Whitbread expects to retain a significant proportion of those affected by finding them alternative roles within the company, which hires around 15,000 people annually.
Strategic Shift
This move follows a business review initiated in November 2024, a year after Whitbread first unveiled its five-year plan. The company has been grappling with higher costs resulting from the chancellor's budget. Whitbread had already begun converting underperforming restaurants into hotel rooms and now intends to extend this policy across its remaining 197 branded restaurants.
The company also plans to sell and lease back £1.5 billion of its freehold properties to fund future growth, shifting towards a model where it leases rather than owns its hotels. Dominic Paul, Whitbread's chief executive, stated: "We plan to convert all our remaining branded restaurants to an integrated food and beverage offer that is preferred by our hotel guests and will unlock the addition of more highly profitable extension rooms."
Financial Pressures
Whitbread warned in late 2025 that Rachel Reeves's budget tax policies would cost it an additional £50 million this year, due to changes in business rates calculations. This came on top of rising wage bills and food prices. The FTSE 100 company has also faced pressure from activist investor Corvex, a New York-based hedge fund that holds a 6.05% stake, making it the second largest single shareholder. Corvex argued that Whitbread's share price undervalued its assets, including its UK leasehold properties.
End of an Era
With this strategic shift, Whitbread will become a pure hotel business, approximately seven years after selling the Costa Coffee chain to Coca-Cola for nearly £4 billion. The Beefeater brand, established in 1974 and known for steaks and classic pub dishes, along with Brewers Fayre, will disappear from UK high streets.
The announcement coincided with Whitbread's report that revenues for the year to 26 February remained flat compared to the previous year. Shares fell more than 3% on Thursday, making it one of the biggest decliners on the FTSE 100, with a 20% drop over the past six months.
