Major grocery store closes 17 shops and axes 52 cafes and 35 meat counters leaving a whole bunch of employees susceptible to redundancy

Supermarket giant Morrisons has announced it is shuttering dozens of cafés and stores across the country – putting hundreds of jobs at risk of redundancy.

Over the next few months, 52 cafés, all 18 Market Kitchens, 17 convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies will close for good.

The retailer said ‘recent significant cost increases’ were partly to blame for the closures, which will put 365 roles at risk.

The supermarket giant said it was costing more to run the services than it was making from customer spending. 

Despite this, CEO Rami Baitiéh insisted Morrisons and its cafes have a ‘bright future’.

Rami Baitiéh, Chief Executive, said: ‘The changes we are announcing today are a necessary part of our plans to renew and reinvigorate Morrisons and enable us to focus our investment into the areas that customers really value and that can play a full part in our growth.

‘Morrisons Cafés are rightly famous for their great quality well-priced food, their place in the local community and their appealing mix of traditional favourites alongside exciting new dishes. 

‘In most locations the Morrisons Café has a bright future, but a minority have specific local challenges and in those locations, regrettably, closure and re-allocation of the space is the only sensible option.

The CEO continues to insist Morrisons has a ‘bright future’ despite the job cuts and store closures (file image)

Rami Baitiéh said: ‘The changes we are announcing today are a necessary part of our plans to renew and reinvigorate Morrisons and enable us to focus our investment into the areas that customers really value and that can play a full part in our growth’

‘Market Street is a beacon of differentiation for Morrisons and we remain committed to it. But as we modernise we are making some necessary changes to the areas of the model which are simply uneconomic. 

‘In some stores where we are closing counters or Cafés, we plan to work with third parties to provide a relevant specialist offer.

‘Although these changes are relatively small in the context of the overall scale of the Morrisons business, we do not take lightly the disruption and uncertainty they will cause to some of our colleagues. 

‘We will of course take particular care to look after all of them well through the coming changes.’

Mr Baitiéh, an ex air force colonel, dubbed ‘Mr Fixit’, had been trying to save Morrisons after he took over the business in November 2023.

In March that year, it was reported the company was hemorrhaging cash, racking up £1.5billion of losses.

Mr Baitiéh then informed staff that the two most important groups in Morrisons are buyers and store managers and more autonomy needs to be granted to them.

The Frenchman, born in Lebanon and previously CEO of Carrefour, began daily unannounced store visits and left his own email address in the complaints section of the supermarket’s website for customers to contact him directly.

Mr Baitiéh shaking hands with a Morrisons customer during a visit to one of its stores 

He also sought to whip bosses into shape by inviting the top 150 people at the retailer to join him on an hour-long session on Google Chat, the instant messaging platform.

Mr Baitiéh faced an uphill battle to transform Morrisons – mired in trouble under its then private equity owners, Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CD&R). The chain’s market share dropped by 9.1 per cent to 8.6 per cent over the year before his takeover, according to Kantar, and it was booted out of the Big Four by Aldi.

In a quote put out by Morrisons, the CEO, 53, sought to emphasise his familiarity with the retailer.

‘Morrisons holds a special place for shoppers across the UK, and I am honoured to be joining the business to help build on the strong links the company has with its loyal customers and the communities where it operates,’ he said.

‘As a manufacturer, wholesaler and seller of food, Morrisons is uniquely positioned to grow in the coming years while remaining deeply focused on customer satisfaction.’

Morrisons saw its sales rise in 2024 as the supermarket group claimed market share gains from competitors and grew its loyalty card user base. 

Mr Baitiéh said: ‘This has been a year of urgent reinvigoration and positive progress for Morrisons.

‘Customer transactions increased, market share grew from Q2 and we saw positive switching from our competitors.

‘The improvements across the business have resulted in better availability in our stores, sharper prices, more effective promotions and a strong and growing loyalty scheme.’

In January this year, the supermarket giant gave its backing to farmers protesting Labour’s inheritance tax raid in a blow to Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

A video posted on social media saw the grocery chain tell Britain’s farmers it shared their concerns about the impact of Labour’s action, adding: ‘We’re with you.’

Campaigners hailed Morrisons’ intervention as a ‘major development’ in the fight against the budget measures.