Sainsbury’s to make major change in all big supermarkets and cut 3,000 jobs
SAINSBURY'S is set to make a major change to all its stores - and it will leave shoppers furious.
One of the UK's biggest supermarkets is axing patisserie, rotisserie and pizza counters in all of its bigger branches and shutting 61 in-store cafes.
The back wall in stores will instead be replaced by free-from products.
The retailer has also confirmed it will be majorly overhauling its head office, with 3,000 jobs at risk.
Simon Roberts, Sainsbury’s chief executive, said the supermarket was having to close sections due to a "challenging cost environment".
He added: "The decisions we are announcing today are essential to ensure we continue to drive forward our momentum but have also meant some difficult choices impacting our dedicated colleagues in a number of parts of our business.
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"We’ll be doing everything we can to support anyone impacted by today’s announcements."
Sainsbury's said most of its loyal customers did not use cafes regularly and its cafes and food halls were becoming more popular.
This is the full list of cafes which will be closing:
- Fosse Park
- Pontypridd
- Rustington
- Scarborough
- Penzance
- Denton
- Wrexham
- Longwater
- Ely
- Pontllanfraith
- Emersons Green
- Nantwich
- Pinhoe Road
- Pepper Hill - Northfleet
- Marshall Lake
- Rhyl
- Lincoln
- Bridgemead
- Larkfield
- Whitchurch Bargates
- Sedlescombe Road
- Barnstaple
- Dewsbury
- Kings Lynn Hardwick
- Truro
- Warren Heath
- Godalming
- Hereford
- Chichester
- Bognor Regis
- Newport
- Talbot Heath
- Rugby
- Cannock
- Leek
- Winterstoke Road
- Hazel Grove
- Morecambe
- Darlington
- Monks Cross
- Marsh Mills
- Springfield
- Durham
- Bamber Bridge
- Weedon Road
- Hempstead Valley
- Hedge End
- Bury St Edmunds
- Thanet Westwood Cross
- Stanway
- Castle Point
- Isle of Wight
- Keighley
- Swadlincote
- Leicester North
- Wakefield Marsh Way
- Torquay
- Waterlooville
- Macclesfield
- Harrogate
- Cheadle
Sainsbury's today also confirmed it will bring more of its core food ranges to more supermarkets while "simplifying" its management structures.
The retailer has said it wants to create more space to offer its fresh food ranges in stores.
Also today, the supermarket said it would reorganise its head office departments to "become dedicated to different needs" of the business.
This would lead to an estimated 20% reduction of its head office staff, or 3,000 colleagues.
The cuts come after Sainsbury’s announced its “biggest ever” Christmas trading period and said profit for the full-year would likely be between £1.01 billion and £1.06 billion earlier in January.
But the supermarket is also trying to cut costs by £1 billion-a-year, and last year it cut about 1,500 roles, mostly from a contact centre in Cheshire.
The company said in late 2024 that tax increases from the October Budget would hit it with an extra £140 million in costs, warning that the changes would also lead to higher inflation.
The Government is set to hike employer National Insurance contributions from 13.8% to 15% from April.
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The threshold at which bosses will have to pay tax on workers' pay is also being lowered from £9,100 to £5,000.