Wetherspoon’s plans to open 250 new pubs in the next five years, creating 10,000 new jobs, it has emerged.
The new posts will include management, bar and kitchen staff, as the chain bucks the trend which has seen hundreds of pubs close during the recession.
The announcement of its £250m expansion plan comes after a record year of sales at the chain.
The company’s chairman, Tim Martin, said: “Our pubs are extremely popular and we wish to build on their success by opening more.
“I am confident that the new pubs will be an asset to their respective towns and cities.”
Underlying pre-tax profits at JD Wetherspoon were 13.6% in the year to July – a record since the firm was incorporated in 1983.
JD Wetherspoon currently employs 21,000 people and owns 743 pubs in the UK.