Premier Inn Owner Whitbread Names Dominic Paul New CEO

Premier Inn's owner Whitbread said on Wednesday that it has named Dominic Paul as its new CEO, to succeed Alison Brittain, who has "decided to retire from full-time executive life" at the end of the year.

Brittain had steered UK-based budget brand Premier Inn for a half-dozen years, including through the shoals of the pandemic, while also helping parent company Whitbread sell its popular Costa Coffee chain to Coca-Cola. Brittain has also been the rare woman worldwide in a CEO role of a hospitality company.

"It has been an enormous privilege to lead Whitbread during a period of significant expansion for our well-loved brands, in both the UK and in Germany," said Alison Brittain in a statement. "The business has recovered from the pandemic well ahead of expectations and is continuing to trade strongly and gain market share."

Mr Paul most recently served as CEO of Domino's Pizza Group and was previously a managing director of Costa Coffee for three years, and was also a top exec at Royal Caribbean Cruise Line.