Recently installed chief executive Alison Brittain may well be celebrating after revealing that Whitbread 's (WTB) Costa Coffee chain saw same-store sales recover. The division registered 2.6 per cent growth in like-for-like turnover, with total sales up 11.5 per cent, reversing some softer trading in recent quarters.
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Encouragingly, its Premier Inn hotel business also saw like-for-like sales growth with a 2.1 per cent rise. Ms Brittain said the chain gained share in spite of the weaker than expected market. Like-for-like revenue per available room fell by 0.5 per cent but this reflects its extension programme and the roughly 3,600 rooms it added in the prior quarter.
