Whitbread, owner of the Premier Inn and Brewers Fayre brands, last month put forward its Accelerating Growth Plan, which will add 3,500 new hotel rooms to Premier Inns across the UK and evolve the company's food and beverage offer. This could result in Taunton's The O'Bridge Brewers Fayre being sold, along with several others, the company has confirmed. Footfall at the neighbouring branded restaurants owned by Whitbread - including Brewers Fayre - which serve 466 Premier Inns, have reportedly suffered from a reduction in footfall from non-hotel guests. An integrated restaurant will then be built inside each of these buildings alongside the hotel rooms, mirroring the already successful format of 387 integrated restaurants that are already in operation. 21 of the remaining branded restaurants will be sold for a total of £28m after combining for a loss of £9million in the 2024 financial year, resulting in the loss of around 1,500 jobs.

Source: Express May 31, 2024 08:24 UTC