Whitbread hits the headlines cutting 3,800 jobs and closing Beefeater/Brewers Fayre amid cost pressures. UK-born brewery-turned hospitality giant since 1742.
Whitbread has announced a five-year plan that includes cutting about 3,800 UK and Ireland roles and closing the remaining Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants as part of a shift to a pure‑hotel model, funded by selling £1.5bn of freehold properties. The group is pursuing cost savings amid tax rises and activist investor pressure, with redeployment offered where possible.