BRITISH LEISURE group Whitbread reported solid growth in first-quarter sales, boosted by a strong performance from its coffee shop chain, Costa Coffee, but said it was unsure if it would benefit from the upcoming Olympic Games in London.

Whitbread, which also owns budget hotel chain Premier Inn, said underlying sales rose 4.5 per cent in the 13 weeks to May 31st, helped by an 8.4 per cent rise in like-for-like sales at Costa and a 4.3 per cent jump at Premier Inn, which it plans to expand.

“Our plans for profitable growth are well established, supported by our strong balance sheet, and we plan to open 4,200 Premier Inn rooms, eight joint-site restaurants and 350 new Costa stores this financial year, creating an additional 3,500 UK jobs,” said Whitbread chief executive Andy Harrison.

“For the second quarter we face tougher comparatives against a strong result last year, together with the uncertain impact of this summer’s major sporting events.”

Mr Harrison said yesterday the company had no plans to spin off its Costa chain and the focus was on growing the business. – (Reuters)