Pulling in the crowds: Superstar singer Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift’s concerts lifted Premier Inn-owner Whitbread’s hotel room sales by 11 per cent in the last quarter.
Chief executive Dominic Paul said demand rocketed within minutes of her UK tour dates being announced, boosting performance in the three months to the end of November.
‘In the UK, what we see is when those concerts are announced, our hotels sell out incredibly quickly,’ added Paul. The 34-year-old singer spent 2023 travelling the world on her Eras Tour, smashing records for ticket sales and boosting the economies of every city that she visited. She plays a series of dates in the UK in June and August.
Whitbread has 800 hotels in the UK and said strong sales continued into the fourth quarter with revenue per available room – a key gauge of performance – 10 per cent ahead of last year.
The company, which also owns food brands including Beefeater and Bar + Block, said food and drink sales grew by 6 per cent year on year.
Whitbread shares rose 2.3 per cent, or 82p, to 3632p.
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