Carlsberg UK reports market share gains: Carlsberg UK has reported that its share of the UK beer market increased from 15% to 15.4% in 2012 driven by a “notable increase in the on-trade”. The company stated: “The quality of our customer service, product portfolio and on-trade business understanding underpinned this result.” The company reported a small decline in UK turnover to £994.5m from £999.2m the year before. It reported a loss of £11.5m compared to a loss of £3.1m the year before. The company stated: “2012 was a busy year for Carlsberg UK. In addition, to the major buildings works associated with the brewery expansion, the company transitioned to a new primary distributor and invested significantly behind innovation, customer and systems. Conditions in the beer market remain challenging. Declining volumes, high duty rates and intense competition are putting pressure on the profit pool available to brewers. 2012 was an important year for key events. Despite the poor summer weather, we were able to achieve important success. This was underpinned by a significant marketing investment behind our developing product portfolio. Beyond the core Carlsberg brands, the company increased distribution of its Staropramen, Tuborg and San Miguel brands and expanded its offer with the launch of San Miguel Fresca.” Operating profit before exceptional items was £10.5m “reflecting market decline and investment behind our infrastructure, our brands and our people”. In November 2012, the company capitalised an inter-company loan of £47.4m and post year-end, Carlsberg UK secured an injection of capital from Carlsberg UK Holdings of £20m. Carlsberg UK employs 1,674 people in the UK.

Batemans win Sainsbury’s beer competition for the second year in a row: Batemans Brewery has won the Sainbury’s Great British Beer Hunt for the second year in a row. Its English B Bock beer has a secured a six month listing with the retailer. Last year, the brewer’s Arabica and chocolate Mocha beer took the top prize in the contest. Jaclyn Bateman, of Batemans, said: “Following the results of last year’s competition, when Mocha won first place, we have been able to broaden our entire range, creating a new market for all our beers.” Thwaites Brewery was runner-up this year with Crafty Dan.

1p-a-drink nightclub ordered to get police approval before staging drinks promotions: A nightclub that sold drinks for a penny on Thursday nights has been told it must ask approval from police before staging future drinks promotions. The condition was placed on the licence of Rumour in Sutton Coldfield after police reported the venue for a series of violent incidents. After agreeing to consult police on future drinks promotions, installing new CCTV and hiring a new security company, nightclub owners Synergy Entertainment Ltd avoided losing its licence.

Panera Bread – 50% of transactions now on loyalty card: Top-performing US cafe bakery chain Panera Bread has revealed that 50% of its transactions in the US now occur on its loyalty card. Chief executive Ron Shaich said: “Technology in itself means nothing if it doesn’t enable a differentiated customer experience. So those people that are able to figure out how to use technology to enable a better guest experience will win. Those people that don’t, won’t. But I guarantee you nobody’s going to a restaurant because it has a mobile app. About 50% of our transactions occur on our Panera card. So we have individual information on individual purchase activities. That means that when we’re going to do something, we can actually look at its impact on behaviour and build our marketing and our campaigns around individual consumers or small groups of consumers as opposed to the mass market.”

Glasgow restaurants sign six-figure recycling deal: A total of 80 restaurants in Glasgow have signed a six-figure deal with the city council to help them meet tough new recycling targets. From 1 January next year, all dining establishments will have to present their waste separately for collection, and recycle as much as possible. The Waste (Scotland) Regulations are regarded as the most significant recycling development seen in Scotland. In an attempt to meet the new environmental target, the Glasgow Restaurant Association – which represents more than 80 sites – has signed the deal with the council. It will mean a dedicated team will collect food, glass, dry recycling materials and other waste from a number of sites from this month. Council officers will carry out individual visits to new restaurants that join the scheme to create a tailor-made service best suited to their needs. The agreement will also mean fewer vehicle trips thanks to waste transfer stations placed across the city.

Tesco relaunches Finest food range to put food back at the heart of the business: Tesco is relaunching its Finest food range to ‘put food back at the heart of the business’ as it tries to improve quality perceptions and boost customer engagement with its food. Leonie Foster, Tesco’s brand marketing director, said: “We want to put food back at the heart of the business and showcase the stories, passion and people behind the range both on the packaging and in our communications. Shopping accounts for just an eighth of the time people spend with food. If we focus just on that experience we miss the point. We want people engaging with our food, understanding where it comes from and how to use it,” she said. Tesco is launching an advertising blitz that will showcase that Finest is “real food made by real people with real passion”.

Hall & Woodhouse reports turnover and profit up: Dorset brewer and retailer Hall & Woodhouse has reported turnover rose 2.8% to £96.8m in the year to 26 January 2013. Pre-tax profit was up 11.4% to £6.3m (2012: £5.7m). The company also opened its new £5m brewery in Blandford, Dorset. Operating profit before exceptional items increased by 7.9% to £8.3m (2012: £7.7m). The company stated: “Despite three public house acquisitions, completing the new brewery and also investing a substantial amount of capital in (our) freehold public house estate, net debt only increased by £1.2m to £46.2m (2012: £45m).” £4m property sales were achieved (2012: £2.6m) from underperforming assets. The managed house estate performed strongly “notwithstanding the very poor weather, and the distractions of Euro football and the Olympics”. The company reported it has a £60m facility in place “allowing us to take advantage of any opportunities in the market place should they meet our investment criteria”. Operating margin grew to 8.6% from 8.2% the year before and return on invested capital was 8.1%, up from 7.6% the year prior. The company added: “Current performance is better than expected due to strong summer trading. This was despite a number of larger sites being closed for refurbishment in Spring 2013. The Lulworth Cove Hotel, Dorset, The Harbour Inn, Axmouth and The Black Rabbit, Arundel all benefited from major investments and have traded above budget since re-opening. H&W Portishead continues to trade encouragingly. Costs remain a challenge for the industry as a whole, but the company has seen the benefit of good cost controls which have protected margins.”

Starbucks launches £2 breakfast deal: Starbucks has launched a £2 breakfast deal that includes a hot sandwich and a drink. Running until 16 October, the deal includes cheese and Marmite, sausage and bacon sandwiches and Starbucks’ ‘Great British breakfast sandwich’. Starbucks UK category manager Julie Prebble said: “The team has worked hard to perfect our breakfast offer, which launched in stores nationwide on 3 October. To celebrate, we’re offering our customers an item from our hot breakfast range for only £2 when they purchase a handcrafted drink before 11am until 16 October.”

McDonald’s hires first chief digital officer: McDonald’s has hired former Amazon and Yahoo executive Atif Rafiq as its first chief digital officer, as it looks to implement a more “coordinated and comprehensive” digital strategy. Rafiq will lead McDonald’s global digital strategy and will be responsible for delivering future growth in e-commerce, “modernising” the restaurant experience, and engaging with consumers “across the digital landscape”. He will report to chief brand officer Steve Easterbrook. Rafiq most recently held the role of general manager of Kindle Direct Publishing at Amazon. He joined Amazon from Yahoo, where he was general manager of the brand’s Y! Local division. Easterbrook said: “Consumers visit and interact with our brand in multiple ways, and digital continues to grow increasingly important to them. Rafiq will lead a more coordinated and comprehensive digital strategy for our global organisation as we deepen our connection with our customers. His cutting-edge thinking, background and expertise will help us drive even greater innovation in this arena.”

Jamie Oliver hires Dragon Rouge to put passion and personality into his cookware range: Jamie Oliver has hired design agency Dragon Rouge to put more personality into the chef’s cookware range. Brand licensing controller Kerri Palmer said: “The existing range has strong design and good standout but it doesn’t reflect Jamie’s passion for food or have a huge taste appeal.” She reported that the Jamie Oliver lunchtime range at Boots had been a “real success”. “We’ve also seen significant success and listings with Waitrose and The Co-op with our Italian range of sauces, pesto and olive oils.” Around 60% of Jamie Oliver’s food product sales are made abroad.

Mezze lines up two more openings: Mezze, the six-strong West Country operator led by Alex Tryfonos, has lined up two more openings for 2014. The company, which has opened four sites in the last 18 months, is currently turning over £7m a year. Its most recent opening, The White Lion in Portishead, Somerset, an Enterprise Inns site, has been averaging takings in excess of £40,000 per week. Tryfonos told Propel: “We would like to open four sites a year but we have the infrastructure in place to open as many as ten.”

Pret A Manger US boss – breakfast and hot food are the opportunities: The new president of Pret A Manger in the US, Robert Naylor, has set out his main priorities. He said: “We’ve achieved great growth, and I want to continue it. We have opportunities in a number of areas, like breakfast and hot food, that we’re putting money and resources into now.” He added that he expected “a significant change in that arena in mid-October”.

Cook & Garcia named Best Independent Outlet in Grab & Go awards: Cook & Garcia has been named Best Independent Outlet at the Lunch Business Grab & Go awards. Maria Bracken, editor of Lunch Business and organiser of the awards, said: “Cook & Garcia is a great start-up business, competing as one of the only independent operators on Richmond High Street. It is a worthy winner priding itself on offering quality, healthy food at an affordable price.” Richard Garcia, founder of Cook & Garcia, said: “What we do is not complicated, but executed extremely well. We are uncompromising in our standards. Every cup of coffee, every sandwich, every customer experience has to be the best it can be. This is the only way to compete and survive on the high street. We are thrilled that all our hard work has been recognised with this award.”

Baa Bar chain slips into losses: Baa Bar, the eight-strong Liverpool-based company, has reported a pre-tax loss of £750,883 for the year 31 March 2013 – compared with a profit of £964,002 in the previous year. Sales increased slightly from £10.3m to £10.7m during the period. The loss was linked to an increase in operating costs as well as property impairment adjustments following the revaluation of its properties. Baa Bar operates sites in Liverpool, Manchester and Nottingham and opened its eighth site in Leeds during the year. The company said its new location had generated good revenues since its opening and is aiming to capitalise further on a “strong student offer” in the current year. Like-for-likes declined 7.8% during the year. In the accounts, Baa Bar said it was satisfied with the year’s performance “in the context of the general economic climate which can have a knock-on effect on discretionary customer spend”.

Marylebone pub triggers bidding war: The Swan & Edgar in Marylebone has sold through agent AG&G for significantly above its £650,000 asking price, after 90 potential bidders attended two open viewing sessions – around a third of them made offers. “The Swan & Edgar is almost certainly going back to its beginnings, as we believe it started life as a house, although it’s been a pub since at least 1910,” said James Grimes of AG&G. “The big attraction is its excellent location in a quiet street near two Tube stations and Regent’s Park and in the Dorset Square conservation area. It’s an elegant London brick end-of terrace building with a small but useable courtyard. It’s no surprise that it’s ended up with a small developer who plans to turn it into a house, subject to permissions. He should more than get his money back.” For the near-million pound price, the new owner gets 1,337 square feet of interior set over four floors, including basement.

Prezzo to open three new Cleaver restaurants before Christmas: Prezzo is to open three new Cleaver restaurants before Christmas after the success of the first in Cobham, Surrey. Cleaver, specialising in chicken, burgers and ribs, will open in Wokingham, Leatherhead and Oxford. Burgers are handmade with prime Scottish beef, the chicken is from selected Norfolk farms and the ribs from fully traceable locally sourced pork. The design of the restaurant means that the divisions between bar, kitchen and seating area have disappeared and the kitchen is now part of the restaurant with the chefs as part of the theatre. The restaurant layout makes a central feature of the cooking with the chicken rotisserie clearly visible to the guests. Cleaver operations manager Scott Charlesworth said: “We are looking forward to opening the three new Cleaver restaurants. We believe that they will each be good additions to the eating out scene in their respective towns.”

TRG Giraffe at T5 wins best airport casual dining restaurant award: Giraffe Restaurant in Heathrow Terminal 5 has won “Best Airport Restaurant - Casual Dining” at the 3rd Annual FAB Awards. The restaurant is operated by TRG Concessions – part of the Restaurant Group. The awards are a global competition and there were 209 nominations for various categories this year. TRG Concessions managing director said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won this award, the iconic design of Giraffe T5 is outstanding and unlike any other restaurant in the world, but this is recognition for the exceptional quality of food, drink and hospitality that is delivered to every guest 365 days a year, and is testament to all of the hard work that our team put-in to delivering an unbeatable customer experience - we are truly proud of them and thankful to our partner Giraffe for their support.”

Travelodge writes to local authorities to encourage them to enter the budget hotel market: Travelodge has written to 124 local authorities to encourage them into the hotel sector by taking advantage of cheap government loans to build on surplus land. Under the plan, local authorities identify surplus land that can accommodate a hotel and then borrow money from the Treasury through the Public Works Loan Board at a fixed, low-interest rate. The hotel is leased to Travelodge on a 25-year term with upward-only rents linked to inflation. Travelodge has opened sites in Eastleigh and Aylesbury under the model and has five more in the pipeline. The budget hotel operator is hoping to secure as many as 20 sites through the initiative.

Wetherspoon wins best airport bar in the world award: JD Wetherspoon has won a prestigious award at the Airport Food and Beverage Awards (FAB). Its pub, The Red Lion, located at Gatwick Airport’s north terminal (airside) has been named as the best worldwide airport bar, at the awards held in Dubai. The Red Lion has seating for 240 customers and is open throughout the week from the first flight (approximately 3am until the last flight leaves). The Red Lion has been established on the site since 1995, however the pub was redesigned in July this year. The LED signage installed to the front entrance area has created a video wall which can be seen both inside and out on the concourse area and sets the tone for the pub’s new-look. The bar design is now contemporary, with an industrial touch provided by the height of the mild steel back bar display and the new lighting installation which can be manipulated to shift between moods to suit the traveller’s time of day. Wetherspoon head of development and acquisitions Jon Randall said: “We are delighted that The Red Lion has won this award. It serves thousands of customers each week and plays an important part in the overall success of Wetherspoon. There are numerous airport pubs and bars across the world, so it is very pleasing that The Red Lion has been named as the best in its sector.” Meanwhile, JD Wetherspoon will open a pub in Poulton, called The Poulton Elk on 17 December, converting the former Edge bar on Hardhorn Road, which has been closed for two years. The name was picked by readers from a choice of five – with Wetherspoon having the final say – and refers to the discovery of the skeleton of a 12,000-year-old elk in a building site on Blackpool Old Road, in July 1970. The company is spending £1.4m refurbishing the site and will create between 45 and 50 jobs. 

Star Pubs & Bars to invest £200,000 to create Twenty One Bar & Grill: Star Pubs & Bars is investing £197,000 to convert a bar, The Lounge, in Knutsford, Cheshire, into Twenty One Bar & Grill. Lessees Jasper Perry and Adam Bartnik are investing a further £40,000 in fixtures and fittings. Perry said: “Twenty One Bar & Grill will offer Knutsford a new unique urban contemporary bar and restaurant. Working alongside Star Pubs, who are helping to invest in the site, we aim to deliver something different for the people of Knutsford and the surrounding areas.”

Côte takes Devonshire Street, London site: Côte has taken an assignment of the lease of Odins & Langans from Langans Restaurants, in Devonshire Street, just off Marylebone High Street, at an undisclosed premium. The rent for the 3,000 sq ft ground floor and basement premises is £91,000 per annum. Nick Weir, of agent Shelley Sandzer, who secured the deal, said: “Côte has been one of the outstanding success stories of the last few years. This is a great site for them – Marylebone High Street is a well known dining location and Côte will be a great addition to the mix.” This is the restaurant chain’s 24th location in London, in addition to sites throughout the UK. It is expected to open in December.

Masterchef finalist Dave Coulson opens new restaurant on Tyneside: Masterchef finalist Dave Coulson has opened his own restaurant, Peace and Loaf, on Tyneside. It seats 56 diners, created 16 jobs and offers a Northern-inspired menu. Alongside fellow North Easterner John Calton from South Shields, Coulson appeared in the final three on the BBC’s popular MasterChef: The Professionals competition. The pair were pipped to the prestigious crown in a tense finale watched by millions of viewers by Claire Lara, a catering college tutor from Liverpool.

Work starts on £1m refurbishment of Oceana Kingston: Work has begun on a £1m scheme to re-open Kingston’s Oceana nightclub in November as Pryzm, creating 40 new jobs for the town. To reduce waiting times, the reception area will be completely re-designed with a new entry system, increasing the access points from two to three whilst retaining the club’s stringent security checks. The downstairs dance room will be for over 21s and the main room will feature the very latest lighting and sound effects, a new dancefloor and the DJ mixing desk will be positioned in the heart of the room. The third Disco Room will enjoy a ‘sparkle’ with VIP seating and table service throughout the nightclub.

Spirit Flaming Grill brand launches mobile challenge app: Spirit’s steak and grill pub brand Flaming Grill has launched a web-based mobile app called Defeat the Meat to digitalise its Hall of Flame – a wall of recognition for those who have completed a Challenge meal. The app, which launched this week, encourages guests who are looking to take on one of their two challenge dishes; the Flaming Challenge Burger or the 24oz Steak Challenge, to record and share their efforts using the app and see their achievement listed in the digital Hall of Flame. Tapping into the positive social buzz surrounding the brand’s Challenge meals, the app, which guests can connect to by visiting www.flamingchallenge.com using the free Wi-Fi available in all pubs, can be synced with either Facebook or Twitter and allows guests to post their picture with the dish, update on their efforts and view the comments left on their posts from their friends. Their pictures will also be shared on the new Flaming Challenge Facebook page which will offer a more bold and daring content than the main Flaming Grill page, appealing to those who are most likely to take on a Challenge dish. Rachel Bailey, brand manager for Flaming Grill, said: “Our Challenge dishes are fast becoming a staple of the Flaming Grill brand and we understand our guests that do complete the Challenges really want to show off their efforts and see photo on the pub’s Hall of Flame wall.”

Benugo opens not-for-profit members’ club: Benugo founders Ben Warner and Guy Kellner have opened The Club at The House of St Barnabas, a new not-for-profit members’ club in Soho Square. The Club is a partnership with The House of St Barnabas, the charity that has inhabited the Grade I-listed building since 1846. It opened yesterday (Monday 7 October) after a multi-million-pound refurbishment. The club’s founder members will include innovators, social entrepreneurs, pioneering charities, philanthropic businesses and many from the creative industries. The club now offers a new restaurant, bar and lounge spaces, and will offer access to a magical and secluded courtyard garden and chapel. The restaurant is in the grand European brasserie tradition, with a seasonal menu, created by executive chef Arun Manickam (previously of Ashmolean Dining Room).

Giraffe to open dedicated training facility: Giraffe restaurant group will open a dedicated training academy called G1 at the end of this month on the site of their first restaurant in Hampstead. G1 will introduce the next generation of team members and managers to the standards and hospitality that have helped establish the brand. Staff will learn core values and key skills under the dedicated tutorship of trainers both front and back of house. As Giraffe continue to roll out the brand in Tesco stores and high streets across the UK, the academy will be the latest development in their training programme to bring the best people on board. The academy will continue to run as a restaurant with reduced pricing, starters at £3.25, mains £6.25 and desserts £3.25, whilst wines will range from £10-£15. The menu will regularly change over a four-week period to train staff across the entire repertoire of dishes. The kitchen will also run daily specials in addition to experimental items some of which may be rolled out across the group. G1 will close on Mondays for group training and inductions, cook offs and culture days. Russel Joffe, founder and managing director of Giraffe, said: “As we move into our next phase of growth, the new G1 Academy will be the cornerstone of our training programme, fostering talent from all over the UK as well as offer an excellent value dining experience to our local and loyal customers.” Giraffe have also announced a new partnership with People 1st, a government funded organisation who run programmes to help local unemployed people back into work. They will initially partner with People 1st for G1 and forthcoming openings in Tesco stores. Following Watford back in August, two further Giraffe restaurants will open by the end of the year in Tesco Extra stores in Cheshunt and Abingdon. Giraffe has been owned by Tesco since the start of the year but is still run by the original founders Juliette and Russel Joffe and Andrew Jacobs. It currently operates 48 restaurants in the UK, five of which are located in airports and one restaurant in the UAE.