Whitbread Closes Branded Restaurants to Expand Premier Inn Hotels

Whitbread PLC is exiting the standalone branded restaurant sector as part of a five-year restructuring strategy to transform into a pure-play hotel business. The company will close approximately 261 sites in September 2026, including 106 Beefeater locations on September 10, 89 Brewers Fayre sites on September 7, and 66 sites across the Bar + Block, Table Table, and Cookhouse + Pub brands on September 3. To mitigate some losses, Whitbread reached a conditional agreement to sell 53 sites to Queensway Inns, which plans to relaunch them as value-oriented pubs.

Chief Executive Dominic Paul attributed the overhaul to unsustainable cost pressures from government policies, specifically increases in business rates and employer National Insurance contributions. The restructuring aims to reduce costs by £250 million and raise £1.5 billion through the sale of freehold properties. These funds will support the expansion of the Premier Inn brand, with the company targeting a total of 96,000 rooms by the 2031 financial year. Some restaurant sites will be converted into hotel rooms or integrated dining facilities for hotel guests.

The transition places approximately 3,800 jobs at risk across the UK and Ireland, representing about 12 percent of the company's workforce. While Whitbread intends to redeploy as many employees as possible, the sale to Queensway Inns could potentially transfer roughly 900 staff. Additionally, the company announced that the Beefeater loyalty scheme will end on August 31, 2026, with a deadline for customers to collect points by August 24.