Major supermarket closing 16 stores TODAY as part of massive overhaul - full list of stores shutting down for good
More than a dozen Morrisons stores are closing their doors for the last time today as part of a major overhaul of the business.
The firm, which is one of the traditional 'Big Four' supermarkets in Britain, is shutting 16 branches today and another next month.
Bosses at the retailer have blamed Labour's tax bomb budget, which saw it hike National Insurance contributions from employers and increase the minimum wage.
Around 365 jobs are believed to be at risk as part of the move, which will also see 52 of its in-store cafes close permanently.
The re-jig of the chains operations will also hit shops that remain open, as it shuts hot food an meat counters, as well as florists and pharmacies.
The stores that are closing from today are Morrisons Daily locations - these are smaller branches that are run as convenience stores as opposed to larger supermarkets.
The chain's CEO Rami Baitiéh, who previously helmed French supermarket giant Carrefour before joining Morrisons in 2023, said the changes are needed to 'renew and reinvigorate' the firm.
It comes as the retailer said it was costing the business more to run services than it was making from customer spending.
The supermarket said it would also be shutting down several of its hot food counters, meat counters, florists and pharmacies. Picture: Stock image
Closures: Morrisons said it will shutter 16 of its Morrisons Daily stores on 16 April
In March this year, Morrison announced it would be closing 52 cafés, all 18 Market Kitchens, 17 convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies will close for good in the next few months.
The supermarket previously said: 'Morrisons has made the difficult decision to close some Morrisons Daily stores, some of which contain Post Offices.
'We fully recognise the inconvenience this will cause for our customers and apologise for the short notification as these branches close between 9 April and 14 May.'
Announcing the closures last month, 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.'
Despite it costing the business more to keep services running compared to what it makes from revenues, CEO Rami Baitiéh insisted Morrisons and its cafes have a 'bright future'.
Mr Baitiéh - an ex air force colonel, dubbed 'Mr Fixit' - 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.
Mr Baitiéh shaking hands with a Morrisons customer during a visit to one of its stores
'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 has 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.
