Greene King reports challenging first half, improving tends since period end: Greene King has reported revenue down 1.2% to £1,031.4m in the 24 weeks to 15 October 2017 with operating profit down 7.5% to £188.4m. The company reported � … view

85% of hospitality businesses victim of malicious and fake online reviews, half suffer blackmail threat: Hotels and restaurants are increasingly worried about malicious and fake online reviews with 85% of hospitality businesses falling vi … view

Wagamama reports UK like-for-likes up 7.1%: Wagamama has reported UK like-for-like sales rose 7.1% in the 12 weeks to 5 November 2017, the second quarter of its fiscal year 2018. Group turnover increased 14.4% to £70.6m while adjusted Eb … view

Cineworld confirms it is in advanced discussions to buy Regal: Cineworld has confirmed it is in advanced discussions to acquire US cinema chain Regal. It stated: “The board of Cineworld notes the press speculation regarding a potential … view

Be At One hits productivity milestone as revenue per labour hour exceeds £50, outperforming industry by 52.5%: Be At One, the specialist cocktail bar group, has broken through a key labour productivity milestone with revenue per labour h … view

Foodservice price inflation eases to 5.8% in October: Foodservice price inflation declined for the second month in a row in October to reach 5.8%, the latest CGA Prestige Foodservice Price Index has revealed. It is the joint lowest monthl … view

Shaftesbury reports West End trading ‘largely unaffected’ by slowing economy: Shaftesbury, which is landlord to 282 pubs, restaurants and cafes in the West End, has reported its tenants are seeing resilient trading growth and has been … view

Women biggest losers in pubs decline with female licence holders down 44% in past five years: Women have been the biggest losers in the decline of pubs with the number of female licence holders down almost 44% in the past five years, acco … view

Patisserie Valerie reports turnover and profit boost: Patisserie Valerie has reported sales up 9.7% to £114.2m (2016: £104.1m) in the 12 months ended 30 September 2017. Online sales were up 26% to £4.8m (2016: £3.8m) and gross profit … view

Ei Group becomes first UK pub company to participate in Lloyds Bank energy saving initiative with £50m loan: Ei Group, formerly Enterprise Inns, has become the first UK pub company to complete a loan under Lloyds Bank’s green lending i … view

Revolution Bars Group reveals trio of December openings: Revolution Bars Group is to open three new sites under its Revolution brand next month – in Solihull, Inverness and Putney. The openings, which will create about 180 jobs, will in … view

Fuller’s reports turnover and profit rise in First Half: Fuller’s has reported sales rose 6% to £209.3 million (2016: £197.6 million) in the 26 weeks ended 30 September. Adjusted profit before tax was up 4% to £23.8 million (201 … view

Grind hits £750,000 crowdfunding target within three hours of launch: London-based Grind, the independent coffee and cocktail bar, has hit its £750,000 target on crowdfunding platform Crowdcube within three hours of the campaign being l … view

 

Sector discounting levels ‘unsustainable’ as M&B refrains from following suit: Urba … view

Mitchells & Butlers reports like-for-likes hit 2.3% in most recent seven weeks: Mitchells & Butlers has reported like-for-like sales up 2.3% in its most recent seven weeks after like-for-likes rose 1.8% in the 53 weeks to 30 September. It … view

Boxpark submits plans for Wembley venture: Boxpark has submitted plans for its 50,000 square foot venture in Wembley, which will include 27 independent food and beverage operators, 20,000 square feet of dedicated events space, and a 300-c … view

NewRiver Retail updates on pub estate management and development: Property company NewRiver Retail has updated on progress in transferring pubs it acquired from Marston’s four years ago to its own management albeit outsourced to LT Mana … view

Ei Group reports 2.3% like-for-like net income increase: Ei Group, the largest owner and operator of pubs in the UK, has reported like-for-like net income up 2.3% (2016: up 2.1%) for the year ended 30 September 2017. It reported net asset … view

Asian Catering Federation to introduce ‘tiffin clubs’ as it backs ‘takeaway tax’: The Asian Catering Federation (ACF) is to introduce “tiffin clubs” featuring reusable containers as it gave a guarded welcome to government prop … view

Rola Wala founder looking to double estate in next 18 months as third site opens this week, in Oxford: Founder of Indian-inspired street food concept Rola Wala, Mark Wright, has told Propel he is looking to double the estate in the next 1 … view

Multi-site operators scoop eight accolades at Star Pubs & Bars awards: Multi-site operators scooped eight of the 14 accolades at Star Pubs & Bars’ 2017 Star Awards. Caygill & Smith’s Barrelhouse Bar & Grill in Edinburgh won the best b … view

CMA clears Just Eat takeover of Hungryhouse: Just Eat has welcomed the announcement that the CMA has unconditionally cleared the company’s acquisition of Hungryhouse. The company stated: “This decision was expected given the favourabl … view

Be At One reports like-for-likes up 6%: Be At One, the specialist cocktail bar group, has reported like-for-like sales increased 6% for the year ending 2 April 2017. Turnover increased 24% to £36.9m, compared with £29.8m the previous ye … view

Be At One reports like-for-likes up 6%: Be At One, the specialist cocktail bar group, has reported like-for-like sales increased 6% for the year ending 2 April 2017. Turnover increased 24% to £36.9m, compared with £29.8m the previous ye … view

Turkish grill chain to make UK debut: A Turkish grill chain is opening its debut UK restaurant off Leicester Square in December. Ali Ocakbasi, which specialises in a fusion of traditional and modern Anatolian cuisine, will open at 16 Irvi … view

Deltic boss – young Brits going out and spending more to escape ‘stresses of everyday life’: Deltic Group chief executive Peter Marks has told Propel he believes young Brits are now going out more and increasing their average spend … view

Hospitality sector shows resilience as overall consumer spending falls at fastest rate for four years: Spending in UK hotels, restaurants and bars continued to show resilience in October as overall consumer spending declined at the fastes … view

Chopstix acquires Yangtze brand: Chopstix Group, which owns and operates the eponymous chain of 75 noodle restaurants across the country, has completed its first acquisition. The company has bought the Yangtze chain of restaurants from Th … view

Laine Pub Company on the market with £60m plus price tag: Laine Pub Company, which has an estate of 55 pubs in Brighton and London, has been placed on the market with a price tag of £60m plus, The Times has reported. The company is bein … view

Abba star to expand immersive experience with 500-capacity Waterloo venue: Plans to build an Abba-themed restaurant in Waterloo, south London, have been given the go-ahead. The proposals for Mamma Mia! The Party, an immersive theatre and … view

Hard Rock Cafe UK reports turnover and profit, plans new Piccadilly Circus site: Hard Rock Cafe UK has reported a dip in turnover and profit but plans to open a new London cafe, in Piccadilly Circus, next year. The company, which operates … view

JD Wetherspoon reports like-for-likes up 6.1% in Quarter One: JD Wetherspoon has reported like-for-like sales increased by 6.1% and total sales by 4.3% for the 13-week period up to 29 October 2017. The company stated: “The underlying op … view

Sector’s biggest benchmarking survey sees Ebitda as percentage of turnover fall to below 11%: Ebitda as a percentage of turnover has fallen to below 11% in the sector, the haysmacintyre benchmarking survey produced in association with P … view

City of London and Manchester show signs of saturation, says Imbiba partner: Imbiba investment fund partner Darrel Connell has told a Propel conference that both the City of London and Manchester are showing signs of saturation. Speaking … view

Roger Wade – massive footfall means Boxpark Wembley will be best fanzone Britain has seen: Boxpark founder and chief executive Roger Wade has said Boxpark Wembley will be the “best fanzone Britain has seen” when it opens late next y … view

Fourth – aggressive discounting damaging productivity in restaurant sector: Aggressive discounting has damaged productivity in the restaurant sector, according to new research by Fourth, the software partner to the hospitality industry. … view

Jamie’s Italian calls in help following cash flow problems: Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant chain has been bailed out by the chef’s parent company, after suffering cash flow problems. AlixPartners has been hired to draw up a turna … view

Consumers increasingly opting for premium drinks, young adults driving shift: Increasing numbers of British consumers are choosing premium drinks when they go out, new research from CGA has revealed, leading to a surge in sales of craft a … view

Starbucks reports global like-for-likes up 2% in Fourth Quarter: Starbucks has reported global like-for-like sales increased 2% in the 13 week period to 1 October 2017, driven by a 2% increase in average ticket and a 1% increase in transa … view

Burning Night Group embarks on £2m fund-raise to launch new sports concept, identifies four sites: Bar company Burning Night Group is to embark on a fund-raise on crowdfunding platform Crowdcube to launch a new sports-themed concept – … view

Chapel Down reports ‘second highest harvest by volume’: Chapel Down completed its 2017 harvest, yielding ‘excellent quality fruit for our wines and was our second highest harvest by volume’. It stated: “The industry saw a diffic … view

Deltic Group reports sales up 9.1%, sees record Halloween: The Deltic Group, the UK’s largest operator of premium late-night bars and clubs with 57 venues, has reported sales increased 9.1% to £16.4m for the period between 17 September … view

Loungers – like-for-like growth driven by volume, not price: Loungers chief executive Nick Collins has told Propel the company’s continued like-for-like growth is being volume-driven rather than price-led. The Lion Capital-backed grou … view