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‘UK’s worst chain’ Britannia Hotels cut nearly 1,000 jobs after near £10m loss
The hotel chain has blamed the Covid pandemic for its financial situation
Britannia Hotels has been forced to axe nearly 1,000 jobs after reporting a crippling revenue loss of nearly £10m.
Turnover at Britannia Hotels – which operates Sachas Hotel, Britannia Hotel and Britannia Airport Hotel in Manchester – also fell by more than £80m during its latest financial year, newly-filed documents claim today.
The documents also detail a pre-tax loss of £9.5m for the twelve months to March 31st 2021, compared to a profit of £13.7m in the prior year.
Its turnover also fell from £120.4m to £38.3m over the same time period.
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A statement signed off by the board reads: “Sales have reduced 68% for the year. This reflects the impact Covid-19 has had on performance and the trading conditions throughout the economy in 2021.
“Our priority continually remains to maintain occupancy levels and manage operating costs so that the business is well placed to exploit further investment in new properties.
“The hotel industry in the UK is becoming increasingly competitive and this brings an increased risk of losing major sales accounts to competitors.
“We ensure that we retain the necessary flexibility not only on our prices in order to respond to market conditions but also to allow us to adapt and overcome the ever evolving challenges of operating hotels in the current socio-economic environment.
“In addition, we employ tight controls on our costs, particularly labour costs, in order to ensure that the company maintains its competitive position.”
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On the future of its hotels, the company added: “The directors remain confident that the company is in a good position to meet the challenges an opportunities of the future.
“The hotels have managed to maintain their competitive edge through the economic downturn and continue to take steps designed to attract new business and improve market share going forward.
“The directors have carefully considered the availability of working capital and likely levels of trading over the next twelve months.
“They are confident that the business is well placed to meet the challenges including the current geopolitical uncertainty, cost of living crisis and the continuing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.”