Latest news with #SAINSBURY'S
Scottish Sun
25-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Sainsbury's issues major update on closure of patisserie and hot food counters after shutting 61 in-store cafes
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SAINSBURY'S has issued a major update on the closure of all remaining patisserie, hot food and pizza counters in its larger stores. One of the UK's biggest supermarkets has shut the counters as part of a major shake-up of its store estate. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Sainsbury's has closed a number of patisserie and hot food counters in larger stores Credit: Getty It is not clear when the pizza counters closed while is understood the patisserie and hot food counters shuttered last month. It comes after Sainsbury's said they would close "by early summer" in its financial results published last month. The most popular items previously sold at the patisserie and pizza counters are being moved to shelves elsewhere in stores. It means shoppers will still be able to get hold of certain bakery items while new self-service bread slicing machines are being phased in. A Sainsbury's insider previously said the freed-up counter spaces would be replaced with areas selling gluten-free and dairy-free produce. The closures come as part of a wide-ranging update of Sainsbury's' store estate which also saw 61 in-store cafes shut on April 11. The cafe spaces are likely to be replaced with restaurants run by franchises such as Starbucks and Gourmet Burger Kitchen. The supermarket said its hybrid cafe and food halls were becoming popular among shoppers. Sainsbury's first announced the store overhaul in January, as it revealed 3,000 head office staff would also lose their jobs in a senior team shake-up. At the time, chief executive Simon Roberts said the changes would "ensure we continue to drive forward our momentum". It is not clear when the 3,000 staff will lose their jobs, with the cohort making up around 20% of senior management roles. Shopping discounts - How to make savings and find the best bargains The major update at the start of the year came after Sainsbury's toasted its "biggest ever" Christmas trading period. But the supermarket is also trying to cut costs by £1 billion-a-year, and last year it cut about 1,500 roles. In late 2024, the company said tax increases from the October Budget would add an extra £140million to costs. Last month, employer National Insurance contributions were hiked from 13.8% to 15% and the threshold at which they are paid lowered from £9,100 to £5,000. All 61 cafes shut by Sainsbury's 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 Meanwhile, the national minimum wage was also increased in a double whammy for businesses. SUPERMARKETS AXING SECTIONS Sainsbury's is not the first supermarket to announce a major overhaul of its stores, with Tesco ditching delis and hot food counters in 2023. The move came after the retailer said it had seen a big drop in demand for the use of its counters in the preceding years. Tesco said all staff working across the sections would be offered new roles in the business. The move to close the underused counters started in 2019, when Tesco also said it would axe 9,000 jobs. In March, Morrisons said it would shut 52 cafes and 17 stores and axe a number of in-store services. Rami Baitiéh, chief executive, said the plans would allow the supermarket to invest in other areas of the business. The 17 Daily convenience stores have now all closed, with the last branch shutting on May 14. Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@ Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
Scottish Sun
09-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Sainsbury's makes big change in stores and it means shoppers can swerve checkout queues
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SAINSBURY'S is making a big change in stores meaning shoppers can swerve checkout queues. One of the UK's biggest supermarkets is shaking up the way customers can pay via SmartShop. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Sainsbury's has shaken up its SmartShop offer Credit: Alamy SmartShop allows customers to scan products as they go through stores via a physical handset or app on their phone. Users can currently pay for their shop via the app at the end, or at the checkouts if they have a physical handset. However, Sainsbury's has now launched a trial in two stores in Richmond, London, and Kempston, Bedfordshire, of new handsets that let shoppers pay by tapping their card on the devices. Once payments have gone through they can print a receipt at a physical bay or ask for them to be emailed. The devices then have to be returned to SmartShop ports when they leave the store. Darren Sinclair, director of future stores and customer experience at Sainsbury's, said the trial was launched as its own research found lots of shoppers preferred using a physical handset to save their phone battery. Mr Sinclair told The Grocer: "I think about this as trying to reduce friction, improve payment and simplify the shopping journey, as well as the future potential space." He added that more customers using SmartShop benefited Sainsbury's as it allowed the supermarket to track shoppers' habits. "From a heatmapping perspective we can see how people shop. "We don't see the physical customer, just see the heat, so we can see which ends are looked at, which screens are looked at and the flow around the store." Shopping discounts - How to make savings and find the best bargains ALL CHANGE AT SAINSBURY'S The new trial from Sainsbury's comes after The Sun exclusively revealed the supermarket has brought in new till security measures. Shoppers who fail to scan items at self-checkouts will be prompted by VAR-style replays. If an item is bagged without being swiped through, a message will now appear saying: "Looks like that last item didn't scan. "Please check you scanned it correctly before continuing." The move comes amid a surge in shoplifting incidents, with police logging 516,971 incidents last year - up from 429,873 in 2023. Sainsbury's is also in the process of major store upheaval, as it shuts down in-store cafes and other counters. The Sun exclusively revealed last month the 61 cafes' final day of trading was April 11. Meanwhile, patisserie, hot food and pizza counters at its larger shops will be culled "by early summer", Sainsbury's said in its latest financial results. The most popular items sold from these counters will be moved to aisles in stores. The retailer also said, from autumn, new "On the Go" hubs offering hot food will be rolled out across stores. Sainsbury's is also set to cut 3,000 staff at its head office, with 20% of senior management roles being slashed. The retailer announced the plans in January, as its chief executive Simon Roberts said it was facing a "challenging cost environment. His comments came despite strong trading in the 2024/25 financial year. Retailer underlying profit was up 7.2% to £1.03billion, with strong Sainsbury's sales offsetting lower profits at Argos. Full list of 61 Sainsbury's cafes that have closed 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 Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@ Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
Scottish Sun
26-04-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Sainsbury's to make major change in all Scottish stores
The retail giant has a number of stores north of the border SHAKE UP Sainsbury's to make major change in all Scottish stores Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SAINSBURY'S has issued a big update after confirming plans to axe key services from Scottish stores and cut 3,000 jobs. One of the UK's largest supermarkets has confirmed when it will shut remaining patisserie, hot food and pizza counters at its larger shops. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 A Sainsbury's store on Argyle Street in Glasgow city centre Credit: Tom Farmer 3 The retail giant announced a shake-up to its remaining patisserie counters Credit: Getty - Contributor The retail giant has a number of stores north of the border, including in Glasgow, Edinburgh, the Borders and the Highlands. In its latest financial results this morning, the retailer said the counters will shut "by early summer". The most popular items sold from these counters will be moved to aisles in stores. The retailer also said, from autumn, new "On the Go" hubs offering hot food will be rolled out across stores. We have asked Sainsbury's the exact date these hubs will open and when the remaining patisserie, hot food and pizza counters will shut and we will update this story when we've heard back. Sainsbury's first announced plans to axe its remaining patisserie, hot food and pizza counters across larger stores in January. Counters in smaller Local stores are not affected. Sainsbury's also said it would shut 61 existing in-store cafes and cut 3,000 head office staff. The supermarket said the decision to axe the cafes was taken as less of its loyal customer base was using them. The Sun exclusively revealed earlier this month the cafes' final day of trading was April 11, just six days ago. Moment idiot raider gets 'STUCK' lowering himself into Sainsbury's store in bungled Mission Impossible-style burglary However, it is not yet clear when the 3,000 head office staff will lose their jobs. Around 20% of senior management roles will be cut at the supermarket giant as part of plans to focus on fewer, bigger roles and to simplify its head office and management teams. Simon Roberts, Sainsbury's chief executive, said in January the supermarket was facing a "challenging cost environment". This comes despite its latest results, published today revealing strong trading in the 2024/25 financial year. 3 Sainsbury's is making a major change in all its Scottish stores Credit: Getty Retailer underlying profit was up 7.2% to £1.03billion, with strong Sainsbury's sales offsetting lower profits at Argos. Full list of 61 Sainsbury's cafes that have closed 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 However, Sainsbury's is also trying to cut costs by £1 billion-a-year, and cut about 1,500 roles in 2025, 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. The Government hiked employer National Insurance contributions from 13.8% to 15% this month. The threshold at which bosses will have to pay tax on workers' pay has been lowered from £9,100 to £5,000. Meanwhile, the national minimum wage has also been hiked, piling added pressure on employers. SUPERMARKETS AXING SECTIONS Sainsbury's is not the first supermarket to announce a major overhaul of its stores in recent years. Morrisons has this year said it will shut 52 cafes and 17 convenience stores and axe a number of in-store services. The shake up puts around 365 workers at risk of redundancy. All of the 17 convenience stores closed yesterday, apart from one in Haxby which will shut on May 14. Rami Baitiéh, chief executive of Morrisons, said the plans would allow the supermarket to invest in other areas of the business. In 2023, Tesco ditched its delis and hot food counters after the retailer said it had seen a drop in demand. The move to close the underused counters started in 2019, when Tesco also said it would axe 9,000 jobs.
