Bakery chain Greggs have warned that they are planning cuts and have said that they are expecting tough times “for the foreseeable future” as sales remain around 25% lower than this time last year.
The sausage roll giant has entered talks with employee and union representatives to try and find cost cutting measures while minimising job losses. One of the options currently being considered is a reduction in store opening hours.
Greggs currently employs around 25,000 people in 2,000 stores nationwide with plans to add more this year despite the current uncertainty. Chief Executive, Roger Whiteside, has said that he doesn’t know how many jobs will remain after cuts have been decided. He told Reuters: “The dilemma here is about demand…If the customers aren’t there, there’s no point in having the people to serve them.”
The company is hoping that bringing back more of their products and reopening in-store customer seating will see an improvement in sales; and a plan to partner with delivery company Just Eat is “progressing at speed”.