The four Devon cafes axed by Sainsbury's in major overhaul
Four cafés in Devon Sainsbury’s stores are among those closing in part of a major overhaul. The supermarket giant says the majority of shoppers do not use them regularly.
It is now planning to shut its remaining 61 in-store cafés across the UK - almost three years after 200 were closed amid waning demand from shoppers.
Sainsbury's says that while fewer shoppers are using cafés, in-store food halls and concessions are growing in popularity. It will also close its remaining patisserie, hot food and pizza counters in-store and make the most popular items available in the aisles instead.
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The closures come amid plans by the UK’s largest supermarket group to save £1 billion over three years. The latest round of café closures is part of a shake-up which will result in the loss of more than 3,000 jobs.
In Devon, cafés will close at Sainsbury's supermarkets in:
Pinhoe Road, Exeter
Barnstaple
Marsh Mills, Plymouth
Torquay
The latest cuts will see around 20% of senior management roles axed as part of plans to focus on fewer, bigger roles and to simplify head office and management teams.
It comes 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, and last year it cut about 1,500 roles - mostly from a contact centre in Cheshire.
The latest job cuts will see the company “explore redeployment opportunities where this is possible” for people affected, it said.