Whitbread, the parent company of Premier Inn, is set to streamline its operations by slashing 1,500 jobs amidst plans to shutter restaurants while expanding its hotel arm.

With intentions to bolster its hotel footprint, Whitbread aims to reduce its branded restaurant count by over 200. This strategic shift is poised to optimize resources by prioritizing hotel room expansion over restaurant maintenance.

These job reductions, contingent upon consultations, will impact a portion of the 37,000-strong workforce across the UK. Notably, brands like Brewers Fayre and Beefeater fall under the purview of this restructuring.

As part of its strategy, Whitbread intends to offload 126 underperforming restaurants, having already finalized agreements for 21 sales. Furthermore, it plans to shutter 112 establishments, repurposing the space to accommodate additional hotel rooms.

In a bid to mitigate the impact on employees, Dominic Paul, CEO of Whitbread, affirmed the company's commitment to providing support throughout the transition. Efforts will be made to facilitate the retention of affected staff, leveraging both internal opportunities generated by the expansion plans and external recruitment avenues.

These measures come on the heels of Whitbread's robust financial performance, evidenced by a 21% surge in pre-tax profit to £452 million for the fiscal year ending 29 February. Photo by The Voice of Hassocks, Wikimedia commons.