Whitbread extends IT services with Fujitsu in £57.9m deal

Whitbread has extended its technology partnership with IT services firm Fujitsu with a new £57.9m, five-year contract underpinned by net-zero commitments.

The contract builds on the 35-year relationship between the two companies and will see Fujitsu looking after all of Whitbread's wired and non-wired communication, including overseeing payments, connectivity and data to support the 35,000 employees across Premier Inn, Beefeater, Bar+Block and other brands within the hospitality group.

By outsourcing the maintenance of point-of-sale systems, the Whitbread teams will have more time to focus on delivering customer service. Sustainability is also at the core of the agreement between Whitbread and Fujitsu, with the IT provider chosen to assist Whitbread on its journey to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.

"We are delighted to extend our longstanding relationship with Fujitsu in this new ‘customer-focused' service, which provides support to our teams particularly in our hotels and restaurants, enabling them to focus on our customers and aligns with our wider business goals and ambition to continue be the leader in our sector/region," said Rajeet Nair, head of technology operations at Whitbread.

"The new contract with Fujitsu will help drive the right behaviour through data insights and explore new modern channels for service engagement."

Ben Fricke, procurement and supply chain director at Whitbread, added: "As a company that leads the hospitality sector on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, we are committed to our net-zero goal and are excited to work alongside Fujitsu on this journey as we expand and continue to provide exceptional experiences for our customers."