Wetherspoon has announced the opening dates for five new pubs, one of which will be located at a UK airport. The pub chain will debut the Sir Frank Whittle at Heathrow Terminal 2 on July 14, honoring the British RAC officer who co-invented the turbojet engine. This will be the third Wetherspoon pub at Heathrow, joining existing locations at Terminal 4 and Terminal 5.
In addition, Wetherspoon is set to open a new pub at Birmingham University on May 26, situated on Edgbaston Park Road. The establishment, named Joe’s, will operate under a new partnership while being managed by the Guild of Students.
Another exciting opening will be The Sir Ronald Wates at Wates House, Surrey University in Guildford, on July 7. This pub will be owned by the university but franchised by Wetherspoon.
Furthermore, Wetherspoon has plans for two new pubs at Barcelona airport, with the first one expected to open at Terminal 1 by September 2026, followed by a second at Terminal 2 by January 2027. These openings are part of the company’s strategy to launch a total of 15 new managed pubs by the end of the current financial year, aiming to expand its current portfolio of nearly 800 sites.
Amid these expansion plans, Wetherspoons has acknowledged challenges such as higher labor costs, taxes, and energy bills impacting its profitability. The company’s chairman, Tim Martin, highlighted that these cost increases might lead to profits slightly below market expectations. Wetherspoon is facing additional costs amounting to £60 million annually due to rises in national insurance and wages, along with £7 million in energy expenses and £2.4 million from the Extended Producer Responsibility packaging tax.
Despite these challenges, Wetherspoon reported a 31.9% drop in pre-tax profits to £22.4 million for the 26 weeks ending January 25. The company attributed this decline to increased wage costs, alongside expenditures on repairs and business rates. On a positive note, revenues rose by 5.7% to £1.09 billion, with like-for-like sales up by 4.8%, driven by a 7% increase in bar sales. Food sales grew by 1.3%, while hotel room sales decreased by 0.6% following the removal of certain third-party booking agents in the UK.
Looking ahead, Wetherspoons disclosed that like-for-like sales increased by 2.6% over the seven weeks leading up to March 15. The company also revealed that it had opened six new venues during the past half-year, while also closing or selling off six others as part of its operational adjustments.
