Sainsbury’s to close 200 cafes after Starbucks deal
SAINSBURY’S is axing 200 of its in-store cafes, a move that puts more than 2,000 jobs at risk, after agreeing to add more Starbucks and host third-party restaurants at its supermarkets.
It plans to close the cafes this spring. Affected staff can apply for roles in stores and throughout the business. Additionally, it will close its hot food and pizza counters and move from making food from scratch in the bakeries at 54 stores to baking pre-made items.
The Unite union, which represents 9,000 Sainsbury’s staff, has demanded that it rules out compulsory redundancies.
Sainsbury’s has agreed to double the number of Starbucks coffee shops at its stores this year from 30 to 60. At the same time, it has struck a deal to open food halls at its supermarkets with Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG) brands like Caffe Carluccio’s, Gourmet Burger Kitchen and Ed’s Easy Diner. BRG already has one food hall operational at a Sainsbury’s and the deal will result in 30 more opened over the next 12 months.
The grocery giant said that it will keep 67 cafes open while it reviews the rollout of the additional Starbucks and new food halls.
Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts said: “Through our trials with BRG and Starbucks we have learnt that we can offer customers a much better eat-in and takeaway experience working with partners.”
Elsewhere, market research group Kantar estimates grocery prices rose 4.3 per cent in February and apart from the start of the pandemic, it is the fastest rate of inflation since September 2013. In response, households cut their spending by around £26 last month.
According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), annual shop prices rose 1.8 per cent in February, the largest monthly rise in over a decade, driven by a spike in fresh food prices.
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson warned that prices would continue to rise: “Unfortunately, there are limits to the costs that retailers can absorb.”