Whitbread Shuts Down Restaurants, Bets on Hotels

0:00On April 30th, Whitbred, the folks behind Premiere Inn, just announced they're shutting down every last beef eater and brewer's fair restaurant across. The UK and Ireland, that means 3,800 jobs gone as they wrap up these brands for good. They're converting all 197 spots into extra hotel rooms to better serve guests. Plus, the company selling off and leasing back 1.5 billion pounds worth of properties to pump cash into growth. Rare costs from the Chancellor's budget, by an extra 50 million pounds in taxes this year, plus waytikes and food prices forced this reset. An American investor, Corvex, grabbed a 6% stake and pushed for changes, saying assets were undervalued. Chief Executive Dominic Paul says this shift to integrated food options in hotels will boost profits and steal market share from rivals hurting bad. The news stayed flat for the year ending late February and shares dropped 7% right after the news.

1:01With Premiere Inn still dominating over 800 hotels strong, Whitbred's betting big on rooms over restaurants to stay ahead in tough times.