A British steakhouse restaurant group that received backing from a television personality in the culinary field is set to shut its doors permanently, resulting in thousands of redundancies.
The company behind Beefeater establishments has confirmed the complete closure of all 106 of its sites on September 10, including the outlet situated at the Oxford South Milton Interchange.
Whitbread, the parent company, announced during the summer that its 89 Brewers Fayre locations would also be ceasing operations several days prior, on September 7, with one such venue located in Bicester.
This forms part of a broader strategic reorganisation of the business, which additionally operates the Premier Inn hotel chain.
The restructuring process is expected to lead to approximately 3,800 job losses, though Whitbread has indicated efforts to keep as many employees as possible within the organisation.
Beefeater traces its origins back to 1974 and at its most successful point during the late 1990s operated more than 250 branches throughout the United Kingdom.
Around that period in 1999, the well-known chef Brian Turner was engaged to collaborate with the brand on approximately 20 short segments lasting three to five minutes each, focusing on traditional British cuisine.
According to statements made to Marketing Week by Deborah Cutler, who held the position of brand marketing controller, the partnership and upcoming promotional activity were intended to provide fresh momentum to the company’s strategic direction.
The sponsorship was planned to emphasise the chain’s British heritage and its commitment to serving quality British dishes.
Turner, who is now 80 years old, built a television career appearing as a chef on various programmes, including BBC Two’s Ready Steady Cook from 1994 onwards and BBC One’s Saturday Kitchen, where he featured as recently as 2023.
Nationwide, certain Beefeater and Brewers Fayre locations have already been transitioned to become outlets under Whitbread’s proprietary Thyme brand.
Other venues are being sold off or permanently closed, with the reductions expected to affect approximately 12 percent of the company’s 30,000 workforce across the United Kingdom and Ireland employed within its dining establishments.
Earlier this year, a formal statement outlined the restructuring plans, confirming that several restaurants would be transformed to provide additional Premier Inn hotel accommodation.
Further details were provided regarding Beefeater’s customer loyalty programme, with all vouchers required to be redeemed by Monday, August 31.
Members of the loyalty scheme could accumulate 5 points for every pound spent, and upon reaching 500 points, participants became eligible to receive either a five-pound voucher, a complimentary bottle of wine, or two complimentary starters or desserts.
A representative for Whitbread acknowledged the effect of these proposals on workers at the affected locations.
As a company that typically hires approximately 15,000 individuals annually, Whitbread anticipated being able to preserve a substantial number of those impacted and intended to find alternative placements for as many affected staff members as possible.
Nevertheless, the company recognised that the proposed modifications, which would undergo consultation processes, were expected to result in a reduction of roughly 3,800 positions from a combined United Kingdom and Ireland workforce of approximately 30,000.
The organisation committed to providing maximum assistance to those employees affected by the changes.