Japes founder – we can definitely open more than 50 locations in the UK, being an Olympic sportsman gave me the discipline and mentality to succeed in business: Japes founder Aleksandar Aleksic has told Propel the concept “can definitely open more than 50 locations in the UK” after launching its franchise programme. The Chicago-style deep-dish pizza concept, founded by Aleksic and wife Jovana in 2018, earlier this month secured its first partner, with T4 bubble tea franchisee Ajmeet Singh set to open in Camden’s Parkway later this spring. It will be a third Japes site following a debut location in London’s Soho, which opened in 2018, and a further site in Greenwich, which launched last year. “We decided to start franchising about a year ago and we’re really looking forward to the challenge,” Aleksandar told Propel. “As first-time operators, we wanted to make sure we had our own house in order first. Since covid, we’ve made some more aggressive decisions that seem to be working well, increased our sales and profitability, and felt we were ready. We took the profits from the first site to open the second, and that was basically our test site to see if the systems were good and ready to go. We have the capacity to support one further site this year, but it’s more important to set everything up correctly at this stage. Based on the numbers we have and customer satisfaction, we can definitely open more than 50 locations in the UK, but I wouldn’t like to have a specific timeline. London is definitely prime for more Japes, but if we had a strong operator in another city I think we would go for it. We have had a lot of requests for Manchester, but any large city we would look at establishing the brand in.” Born in Serbia, Aleksandar was previously a professional kayak athlete who competed in the London 2012 Olympics and won the World Cup in 2013. After retiring from kayaking, he started working for KPMG while studying economics, then came to London for a Master’s degree and has stayed since. “To have our visas sponsored we applied to a London Business School incubator, where we had to have a business idea, so we applied with a restaurant plan, and that’s how it all started,” he said. “I stopped kayaking quite young as it’s not a long-term career and I stopped enjoying it, which was showing in my results. Kayaking as an individual sport is all down to you, so it teaches you the kind of self-discipline and mentality you need to succeed in business, which was very important at the beginning.” Aleksandar said using a model where stores can be mainly constructed off site – utilising contacts in Serbia to build them for a fraction of the price before shipping them to the UK – allows for low set-up costs. He added that while not ignoring delivery entirely, the focus on Japes will be on offering full-service restaurants. “We believe we’re the only pizza restaurant that has full service and is franchising,” he said. “Most others are providing quick service restaurant versions. Delivery is interesting, but I believe the best food is eaten as soon as it’s ready. Delivery is also well covered with a lot of competition, so we’re focused on in-store sales, with any delivery a bonus. After all, what matters in franchising is the return on investment and scalability, and we can demonstrate both to any potential partner.” Japes will feature in the next Propel UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database, an exhaustive guide to the companies offering a food and beverage franchise in the UK available exclusively to Premium subscribers. The database is updated every two months, and the latest version features 235 businesses. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription.

 

Panel discussing the challenge sector faces to maximise performance of pub assets to take place at Excellence in Pub & Bar Retailing Conference, open for bookings with 20% discount on tickets for Premium Club members: A panel discussing the challenge the sector faces in ensuring it maximises the performance of its pub assets in an era of declining alcohol sales will be held at the Excellence in Pub & Bar Retailing Conference. The all-day conference takes place on Tuesday, 14 May at One Moorgate Place in London and is open for bookings. The panel will feature Stonegate Group chief commercial officer Melissa Wisdom, Shepherd Neame managing director Jonathon Swaine, Greene King managing director Clair Preston-Beer, City Pub Group founder Clive Watson, and sector investor Luke Johnson. For the full speaker schedule, click here. Tickets are £295 plus VAT for operators and £395 plus VAT for suppliers. There is a 20% discount for operators and suppliers who are Premium Club members. Email: kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to book places.

 

Propel’s updated Multi-Site Database to be released on Thursday, 28 March, with seven category segmentation including 504 cafe bakery operators: The next Propel Multi-Site Database, produced in association with Virgate, providing details of more than 3,000 multi-site operators, will be released on Thursday, 28 March, at midday, to Premium Club members – and companies are now searchable in seven main segments. The database features 906 (30%) restaurant operators from the casual dining sector, 761 (25%) pub and bar operators, 504 (16%) cafe bakery operators, 415 (13%) quick service restaurant operators, 249 (8%) hotel operators, 188 (6%) experiential leisure operators and 52 (2%) fine dining restaurant operators. The database is updated each month – this edition includes 16 new companies and brings the total to 3,075. Premium Club members also receive access to five other databases: the Turnover & Profits Blue Book, the New Openings Database, the UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database, the UK Food and Beverage Franchisee Database and the Who’s Who of UK Hospitality. Plus, all members will be offered a 20% discount on tickets to five Propel paid-for events – The Excellence in Pub Retailing Conference (14 May), Social Media for Profit (18 July), the Talent and Training Conference (1 October) and Restaurant Marketer and Innovator (two days in January 2025). Operators will also be able to send up to four members of staff to each of our four Multi-Club Conferences for free. Premium Club members receive their daily Propel Info newsletter 11 hours earlier than standard subscribers, at 7pm the evening before. They also receive videos of presentations at eight Propel conference events two weeks after they are held. This represents around 100 videos of industry insight over the course of the year. Premium Club members will be sent a dedicated monthly newsletter that will highlight key updates in the sector and direct subscribers to all the vital content their membership offers. Premium Club members also receive exclusive opinion columns every Friday at 5pm, which include the thoughts of Propel group editor Mark Wingett and a host of industry leaders from across the sector. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

 

UKHospitality – drop in inflation ‘significant milestone’ but sector businesses continue to face the brunt of price rises: UKHospitality has said the drop in the rate of inflation is a “significant milestone” but that hospitality businesses continue to face the brunt of price rises. The rate of inflation fell by to its lowest level in almost two and a half years last month as price rises for food and eating out slowed sharply. February's drop to 3.4% from 4% means the cost of living is rising at its slowest pace since September 2021. Food and non-alcoholic drinks, plus cafe and restaurant prices, drove the fall but prices are not yet falling, just rising less quickly than they were previously. Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said: “Inflation falling to its lowest level in almost two and a half years is a significant milestone and I’m hopeful this trend will continue. We must not forget that this still means prices are continuing to rise, albeit more slowly, and hospitality businesses continue to face the brunt of those price rises. Yet more costs are being piled on in just under two weeks when both labour costs and business rates rise considerably. It’s disappointing that the government is proceeding with an above-inflation increase in business rates and this, combined with wage increases, will pile the pressure on businesses, who are trying to keep a lid on price increases for customers. I hope this drop in inflation will provide a boost in consumer confidence and also prompt further economic good news, particularly through a cut in interest rates.” Meanwhile, UKHospitality Cymru has urged new Welsh first minister Vaughan Gething to give hospitality businesses in the country “the tools to both survive and thrive.” David Chapman, executive director of UKHospitality Cymru, said: “ I hope the first minister takes the knowledge he has of the sector and works with UKHospitality Cymru to discuss, design and drive progressive policies that can benefit the future of our great sector and the Welsh economy as a whole. It’s impossible to ignore the intense cost pressures our sector faces, which has led to Wales experiencing the biggest closure rate of hospitality businesses in Great Britain. If hospitality is given the tools to both survive and thrive, we can increase our contribution to the economy, create more jobs and deliver more revenue back to the Treasury, funding vital public services.”

Restaurant groups’ delivery sales rise 8% in February as takeaways drop again: Britain’s leading managed restaurant groups achieved year-on-year sales growth of 8% in delivery sales in February, CGA by NIQ’s new Hospitality at Home Tracker reveals. The increase means groups have generated growth in at-home sales for nine months in a row. However, the value of takeaway and click-and-collect sales dropped by 4% from February 2023. Combined, delivery and takeaway sales were 5% ahead, an improvement on the figures of 4% in January and 1% in December 2023. Consumers’ switch from takeaways to ordering in means deliveries accounted for 11% of restaurant groups’ sales in February, while takeaways and click-and-collect orders were worth 4%. Eat-in sales attracted 85% of all spending. Karl Chessell, director at CGA by NIQ, said: “It’s encouraging to see that restaurants’ at-home sales growth is keeping pace with inflation in early 2024. The shift from takeaways to deliveries continues apace, and we can expect further migration as more and more people welcome the convenience of ordering platforms. However, with discretionary spending still under pressure for many consumers, restaurants will have to stay laser-focused on the quality and value of their delivery operations to sustain sales and share.”

Scottish government gets go-ahead to implement code for tied pubs after Supreme Court ruling: The Scottish government can now go ahead and implement the Tied Pubs (Scotland) Act after four years of legal wrangling following a UK Supreme Court decision to refuse permission to hear an appeal from pub companies who had challenged the Bill. The Bill was first introduced by MSP Neil Bibby in 2020. By May 2021, after several stages, the Scottish parliament approved the Tied Pubs (Scotland) Act, which obliged the government to establish an adjudicator to settle disputes and a code of practice managing the relationship between pub companies and their tenants. Since then, the Act has been the focus of a legal dispute, with Punch and Greene King among the companies that challenged the Scottish government’s legislation in the Court of Session, arguing that tied pub contracts were a reserved matter because they involved the regulation of anti-competitive practices. A judicial review was held in July last year when the Lord president, Lord Carloway, upheld the opinion of the previous judge. Following this ruling, the pub companies sought an interim order to prevent ministers going ahead with statutory orders that included the Scottish Pubs Code and the role and appointment of the Scottish Pubs Code adjudicator. By February 2023, although ministers opposed the motion, Lord Malcolm granted an interim interdict – preventing the Scottish government from progressing with the legislation until the appeal process was concluded. It was then that the process took its last step, ending up in the UK Supreme Court, and it refused the appeal, which means that the Act can now be implemented. The Act aimed to ensure that Scottish tied pub tenants had, at least, “the same protections and opportunities” as those covered by the 2015 Act in England and Wales, which established a statutory Pubs Code, and the role of a Pubs Code adjudicator, who oversees the code in England and Wales for tenants who hold tenancies with pub companies that own 500 or more tied pubs.

Tube strikes looming in April and May: A series of tube strikes are looming in April and May as members of the Aslef union stage two 24-hour walkouts. Aslef, which represents more than 2,000 London Underground drivers, said members would walk out on 8 April and 4 May. Aslef also announced train driver strikes at 16 rail companies. One of the train strike days, 8 April, coincides with the planned Tube strikes. Aslef said the 8 April train strike would impact c2c, Greater Anglia, GTR Great Northern Thameslink, Southeastern, Southern/Gatwick Express, South Western Railway main line and depot drivers, and SWR Island Line. Finn Brennan, of Aslef, said the action was part of a “long-running dispute” over working conditions. “Despite a previous commitment to withdraw plans for massive changes to drivers' working conditions, London Underground management has established a full-time team of managers preparing to impose their plans,” he said. “They want drivers to work longer shifts, spending up to 25% more time in the cab, and to remove all current working agreements. It’s about getting people to work harder and longer for less.”

Licensing update: John Gaunt & Partners licensing solicitors has published its latest licensing update. This month, there are news item on new bank notes being introduced, and the introduction of maximum stake limits for under-25’s playing online slots. The full update can be accessed here.

 

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with a retail business that is looking for a head of buying to join its team. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “You will manage all hospitality related purchasing for the business and be responsible for developing and executing creative procurement strategies, managing supplier relationships, and ensuring complete supplier efficiency. Ideally, you will have a proven track record working in senior procurement positions within the food, beverage,or hospitality industries.” The salary is up to £130,000 and the position is based in London. For more information, email Mikey@corecruitment.com.

 

Shepherd Neame CEO – love for the pub as strong as ever, costs rather than demand the biggest challenge for industry: Jonathan Neame, chief executive of south east brewer and retailer Shepherd Neame, has told Propel that the love for the pub “is as strong as ever” with costs rather than demand the biggest challenge for the industry. Speaking following the company’s interim results, where Shepherd Neame reported record first-half revenue of £89m, Neame also said footfall in London was “clearly back”, with like-for-like sales in the period up 17.5% as more people head back to the office. He said: “Demand has been pretty resilient in the last six months. That’s mainly because of the increase in the number of people returning to work in London and because the love for the pub is as strong as ever. We also had a ‘normal’ Christmas for the first time in four years, which was a welcome boost. Some costs are abating but there’s others, like labour, where it’s still acute. That’s driving some country pubs not to open on a Monday and Tuesday, for example. But that love for an after-work pint and a Sunday lunch in the pub after a walk are as strong as ever. People are doing that instead of going out for a three-course meal or having a weekend away. I think the challenge the industry faces is more about costs rather than demand. The sector has been hit by more headwinds than any other industry, but like everything else, we will find a way through it. It presents a real challenge to avoid passing on costs to customers, but in the case of wages, they’re going up across the board, so it’s about making sure that any extra money people have finds its way into our pubs. We are doing our best to run our pubs as efficiently as we can, keep reinvigorating and making them places that people want to visit.” Neame said the company was continuing to focus on inward investment “with some big projects planned”, but said the business was open to acquisitions “if the right opportunity comes along”. He added: “There’s a huge amount of opportunity in our existing estate. That’s where we see the best way to grow our business in the immediate future.” Looking ahead, Neame said: “I’m very optimistic about the future. We’ve got a great summer of sport ahead – hopefully the weather will follow suit this year.”  

Loungers hires Stephen Marshall as new CFO: Cafe bar operator Loungers has hired Stephen Marshall as its new chief financial officer. Marshall will join the Loungers board with effect from 23 April 2024. The Cosy Club, Lounge and Brightside operator said that Marshall has extensive experience as a chief financial officer and in all aspects of finance, IT, procurement and project management. Between July 2021 and November 2023, he was chief financial officer of Pure Electric, a founder-led e-scooter company. Between December 2018 and July 2021, he was chief financial officer of Nisbets, the multinational supplier of catering equipment. From 2013 to 2018, he held a number of senior roles at Dyson, the global technology brand, including UK finance director and interim chief financial officer. He qualified as a chartered accountant with EY in 1995. Gregor Grant, Loungers’ current chief financial officer, will step down from its board on the same day but will remain with the company to provide support and to assist with the handover of responsibilities to Marshall until the end of July. Alex Reilley, chairman of Loungers, said: “We are delighted to appoint Stephen to the Loungers team and look forward to benefiting from his consumer sector and financial expertise. Loungers continues to go from strength to strength, and Stephen's appointment will help us build on our market-leading position as we carry out our ambitious site roll-out plan. The board would again like to thank Gregor for his commitment and enormous contribution over his time at Loungers. Gregor will leave the company with our very best wishes for his future.” Marshall said: “I am hugely excited to be joining Loungers at this exciting point in its extraordinary story. It is a business with a clear strategy, enormous growth potential and an exceptionally strong team. I am looking forward to playing a part in its ongoing success.” Meanwhile, Loungers has opened Vitello Lounge in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, in the site previously occupied by Arc Inspirations’ Banyan brand. It marks Loungers’ 217th Lounge and 256th site overall.

 

Greggs apologises for technology outage that prevented card payments: Baker and retailer Greggs has apologised for a technology outage that prevented it taking card payments in some stores on Wednesday morning (20 March). Customers found branches closed or taking cash only. It was unclear how many were affected although stores in cities including London, Manchester, Cardiff and Glasgow reportedly had issues. A worker at a Greggs store in Manchester told the BBC that when staff turned on the tills on Wednesday morning, an error meant no items were displayed. She said someone had arrived to fix the till so the store was able to open, but others in the area were closed while they waited for technical help. In Exeter, a staff member said two of their three tills were not working due to the error, but they had been able to serve customers on the remaining one. A statement from Greggs said: “We have now resolved the technical issue that affected tills in some of our shops earlier on Wednesday. We apologise for the inconvenience this may have caused to our customers.” It follows McDonald’s suffering technical problems last Friday morning (15 March), which left customers unable to order food from its restaurants, while several supermarkets have had similar issues. Ilkka Turunen, field chief technology officer at software supply chain management firm Sonatype, told the BBC: “The fact that these issues happened in sequential days does hint at a common issue. It’s possible the simultaneous glitch at multiple leading UK supermarkets was the result of ongoing outages at a common network or payments infrastructure provider. Equally as likely is an issue at the software level, which for large businesses, is a mesh of interdependent systems.”

Big Fang Collective eyes Bristol launch for Golf Fang concept: Big Fang Collective, the Imbiba-backed entertainment venue operator that owns the Golf Fang brand, is planning to launch the concept in Bristol. It is hoping to bring the crazy golf concept to the former Wilko site in the city’s Union Street, which closed in October 2023 when the retailer went into administration, reports Bristol Live. A company spokeswomen told Propel: “Big Fang are currently looking at new site opportunities which we’re hoping to be able to confirm as soon as possible.” Founded in 2016 by Kip Piper and Dan Bolger, Big Fang Collective has grown from its original Ghetto Golf experience in Cains Brewery, Liverpool, to become a multi-venue group with six indoor sites across the UK, employing more than 260 people. Each of its venues in Liverpool, Birmingham, Newcastle, Sheffield, Glasgow and Cardiff offer a combination of crazy golf, bespoke art, DJs and signature cocktails. It comes as Big Fang Collective rolls out two in-house concepts at its Sheffield site, at 100-106 John Street in Highfield. The company’s Nothing Cheezy pizza concept, which launched at its Liverpool venue last year, has now opened at Sheffield, along with a first location for its new retro arcade experience, Big Fang Arcade. Last month, Big Fang Collective secured £5.5m in funding from alternative lender ThinCats for further UK expansion and said it is eyeing three new major cities for 2024 launches.

 

Pub People acquires former Derby Brewing Co sites: Midlands pub company Pub People, which is backed by investment manager Downing, has increased its freehold estate with the acquisition of two pubs formerly owned by Derby Brewing Co. The Andy Crawford-led business has acquired the freeholds of The Greyhound, Friar Gate; and Derby Brewing Tap House, Derwent Street; both in Derby. It said that it had “exciting investment projects” planned for both. Last November, the 44-strong business acquired The Spotted Cow in Holbrook, from the Holbrook Community Association, and The Miners Arms near Nuneaton, which took its freehold estate to 34. In September, Propel revealed that Pub People had raised its expansion target to 75 sites as backers Downing opened a new bond for investment. Last October, brewer and retailer Derby Brewing Co placed its pub arm, Real Brewing Pub Company, into administration. The company said its brewery was not affected and continued to operate with two of its sites – the Hole in the Wall, Mickleover; and NOTSA, Aston on Trent – operated by Derby Brewing under a new pub company. The company’s two freehold sites, The Greyhound and Derby Brewing Tap House, were to be sold to clear arrears. Three of the group’s other sites – The Clubhouse, Derby; The Pig in Lichfield; and The Pointing Dogs, Matlock – were closed with immediate effect. Savills acted on the Greyhound and Derby Brewing Tap House deals. 

 

Hollywood Bowl Group – more than half of all management appointments being made internally, majority of hourly paid team members receive performance related bonuses: Hollywood Bowl Group chief people officer Melanie Dickinson has told Propel that more than 50% of the company’s management appointments are being made internally, and the majority of its hourly paid team members have received performance related bonuses this financial year. Last year, the group launched its “Let’s Roll” employee value proposition (EVP) as it looked to “recruit energetic and engaging team members who share our values and way of working”. Dickinson, who joined Hollywood Bowl 11 years ago after working in HR roles for the likes of Pizza Hut, PizzaExpress and Zizzi, said: “We normally track just below 50% of our management appointments being made internally, and we’re tracking slightly higher this year, which is something we’re proud of. As we open these new centres (Hollywood Bowl Group is set to open at least three new UK centres this financial year and add to its Canadian estate with a new Ontario venue, with three more in legals), we want to maintain that pipeline of managers, so we’ve increased the amount of top talent programmes we run. I think a lot of companies would love to have numbers at that level. Many have worked from team member level up and have a great understanding of the business as well as the needs of the customer. We also do what we can do to support team members during the cost-of-living crisis. Last year, our average pay increases for hourly pay were 9%, and 5% for centre management team members. We also offer every team member the opportunity to earn a bonus, with our hourly paid having the chance to earn a performance related bonus (an extra 50p an hour), linked into customer service, sales and recycling metrics. Not many companies pay performance related bonuses to hourly paid team members in my experience. I don’t think it's the norm for the industry, but it helps them feel part of our success.” Hollywood Bowl Group also launched a new graduate training programme last year that saw 12 graduates enrolled, with the aim of fast-tracking them to centre managers. “It’s early days, but we’re already looking to launch the next one, and it’s another route to help us develop our future leaders,” Dickinson said. In an effort to widen its diversity reach, Hollywood Bowl Group has also introduced family friendly benefits like enhanced maternity and parental leave and pay, and added to its female and ethnicity diversity workshops by introducing age, disability and LGBTQ+ ones too, which will run twice a year for team members. “When I joined, there were only four female centre managers,” Dickinson added. “Now, more than a third of all of them are female, and we have worked hard to build that up. Since launching our new EVP, we have had a 400% increase in people visiting our website and a 7,000 increase in applications, and our latest team engagement survey scores show we remain a one-star company, which we are very proud of.”

 

Döner Shack founder to open new Glasgow restaurant: Sanjeev Sanghera, co-founder of Berlin fast casual kebab concept Döner Shack, is set to open a new restaurant in Glasgow. Sanghera, who founded Döner Shack with Laura Bruce in 2019, is planning to open Public Glasgow this summer, which he will operate under his Haus Hospitality business. It follows the Garten Bar restaurant Sanghera opened in his former Döner Haus site in Manchester’s Corn Exchange in 2022. “Excitement is an understatement when it comes to revealing our newest venture,” he said. “Building on the incredible success of Garten Bar Manchester, we’re thrilled to bring an unparalleled dining experience to the west of Scotland, proudly under the banner of Haus Hospitality. There’s something special about launching in your home town – it’s not just business, it’s personal. Introducing Public Glasgow, set to open in summer 2024. Glasgow has long awaited a landmark restaurant that stands out from the rest. While many operators have turned their gaze towards Edinburgh, we’re excited to shine the spotlight back on Glasgow. We’ll leave discussion about our city council for another day! Public Glasgow is designed to cater to every palate and occasion. Whether it’s a refreshing brunch, a business lunch, or an unforgettable evening featuring our signature bottomless hot stone steak, we’ve got you covered. And for those who fancy a sophisticated late-night drink, our exquisite Jade bar awaits.” Sanghera grew Döner Shack to five restaurants before acquiring three of them back from franchisees, as well as several territories, in June 2023, saying at the time that it was “wrong to force them into ambitious development in the current climate”. He has since spent several months overhauling and repositioning the business, and Propel revealed last month that Döner Shack had relaunched its franchise programme. It also unveiled a new menu and branding, while Sanghera told Propel that he is aiming for 50-50 estate split between equity and franchise sites going forwards.

Bru Coffee & Gelato set to open second Cardiff site: Coffee shop concept Bru Coffee & Gelato is set to open a second site in Cardiff. Founded in 2014 by Aftab Gaffar, the business is set to open on Park Place, beneath the Leonardo Hotel, adding to its site in nearby David Street, in the city centre. “We're delighted to announce Cardiff's second city centre Bru is coming soon,” a company spokesman said. “We can’t wait for you to see this one. In the meanwhile, you can continue to enjoy our 100% speciality arabica coffee, freshly prepared food and the best desserts in town just 663 steps away on David Street. Congratulations to the team at Bru Cardiff on this exciting step in their expansion plan within the region.” Bru also operates sites in Leicester, Oadby, Harrow and Vauxhall in London.

 

Little Caesars opens first London restaurant since returning to the UK: Little Caesars Pizza, the world’s third-largest pizza chain, has opened its first London restaurant since returning to these shores. Little Caesars, which previously operated in the UK but pulled out of the market in 2000, made its comeback here with a restaurant in Chellaston, near Derby, in February 2023. This was followed by a second site, in Nottingham, in January. Its third outlet sees it open in the capital once more with a launch at Unit 3 in Red Lion Court, at 1b The Greenway in Greenford, west London. “Londoners can now savour the delicious pizza offerings of Little Caesars as we proudly open our doors in the vibrant Greenford community,” says Paula Vissing, president of global retail at Little Caesars. “Little Caesars is synonymous with quality, convenience, and affordability, which we think British consumers will appreciate.” Rajan Sandhu, franchisee for Little Ceasars Greenford, added: “We are delighted to be working with Little Caesars to open its first site in London and the south of the UK. There is an ongoing demand from locals for quality pizza, delivered at great value prices so we are excited to bring this to the streets of Greenford.” The brand, which currently operates in 28 countries and territories, has plans to continue expanding throughout the UK and is actively seeking franchisees. It will open a second site in London and a restaurant in Liverpool later this year.

Gusto Italian launches subscription-based membership offer: Gusto Italian, the Matt Snell-led business, has re-launched its existing loyalty programme, Gold Rewards, as Gold Club and introduced the Platinum Club, a subscription-based membership to the restaurant's neighbourhood venues. The company said Platinum Club will encompass all the benefits of a Gold Club membership, with the added rewards of 40% off the A La Carte Menu Sunday to Thursday for the cardholder and up to three guests in the out-of-city Gusto Italian restaurants (Alderley Edge, Cheadle Hulme, Cookridge, Didsbury, Heswall and Knutsford). On sign-up, Platinum Club members will receive a bottle of prosecco, and throughout their membership, will receive invites to events and menu previews. Membership will be available for £65 per year or £6 per month. Guests who sign up in the first week of the launch can enjoy their membership at an introductory offer of £55 for an annual membership. Snell, chief executive at Gusto Italian, said: “We are really excited about this in our suburban restaurants and the initial reaction from our guests has been unbelievable. Innovation is in our DNA and this is another industry first from the Gusto Italian team.” Kat Schofield, head of marketing at Gusto Italian, added: “We are thrilled to be paving a new pathway for loyalty within casual dining. Our primary goal is to make every occasion special, and this membership scheme offers an opportunity for our guests to indulge more frequently, for less.”

 

Taster hires Bertrand Peyrat as new CEO: Delivery-only kitchen concept Taster, which was founded by early Deliveroo executive Anton Soulier, has hired Bertrand Peyrat as its new chief executive. Peyrat joins the company, which has more than 30 franchise locations across the UK and four other European countries, from the Vestiaire Collective, where he was chief executive of its international business. Between 2019 and 2023, he was head of the European branch of the French company, before becoming sales director. Before that he also worked at Lazada, owned by Alibaba, as director of operations in Thailand, and then sales director in the same country. He also worked at Amazon for three years. Soulier, who founded Taster in 2017, will become chairman of the business, which reached the €100m annualised sales mark last year. Soulier said: “We have achieved and evolved so much over the last few years. Creating a brand, new model back in 2017 by creating the digital-first food brands, developing a full-stacked technology to manage food operations from end-to-end, evolving toward a full-franchise model, embracing the creator’s economy and launching brands that quickly became top-ranking on the delivery platforms and super popular with a Generation Z audience. However, Taster is in the early days of reaching its full potential. And I’m convinced that Bertrand has the calibre, a genuine passion for food and the wealth of experience to take it to the next level. Like Vestiaire Collective, Taster has always been a category-defining company, leading the innovation in the restaurant/delivery space. I’m extremely excited to welcome him into the Taster family.”

Bird House set to open in Herne Hill: Bird House London, led by Frazer Timmerman and Wil Fuller, will open its latest venue, Bird House Brewery, in Herne Hill on Thursday, 28 March. Located in Arch 1127 on Bath Factory Estate, adjacent to Brockwell Park, the craft brewery will include a tap room that will brew the group’s own house lager and pale ale. These will be distributed and served at Bird House London’s other venues: The Hawk’s Nest, Peckham Arches and Skylarking. There will also be a range of seasonal and special craft beers brewed on site. It will offer seating for 200 guests, with 50 covers inside the arch as well as outdoor seating for 150. Alongside the house lager and pale ale, the drinks menu will also include an array of signature cocktails and wine, while a converted horsebox parked outside will serve smash burgers. Timmerman said: “We are delighted to open our fourth neighbourhood venue, which lies on the site of the former Canopy Brew Co, which was much loved by residents of Herne Hill. We are pleased to have been able to have kept craft brewing alive in the area amongst wide spread brewery closures across London and the UK. We have expanded and improved the on-site taproom and invested into the brewery facilities. In Will Hiscocks, we have a talented and ambitious young brewer, and we are excited by the opportunities this presents to our growing bar business.”

Greene King offering Brits a free pint at their local from Monday – once it rains in the UK’s wettest city: Brewer and retailer Greene King is offering Brits a free pint at their local from Monday – once it rains in the UK’s wettest city. It follows research by Greene King, to mark the first day of spring, revealing that almost three quarters (74%) of Brits claim the rain puts them off going out and socialising. And with it being the wettest March on record for 40 years, Greene King will erect a nine-foot-tall pint glass shaped rain drop detector in Manchester city centre. Once the first drop of rain falls into the pint glass, the detector will light up and the free pints deal will be activated in Greene King pubs up and down the country. To get the free drink, customer will need to say the words “it rains, we pour” when ordering. Free drinks will be available for 24 hours from the “trigger point”. The promotion is available in Greene King managed pubs only and is for one free drink per customer only, across all locations. Customers will receive a Greene King stamp on their hands once the free pint has been given.

 

New bar featuring Scotland’s largest collection of rum set to open in Edinburgh: A new bar featuring Scotland’s largest collection of rum is set to open in Edinburgh. Ruma, which is Scots Gaelic for “rum”, will open on Friday, 29 March, at 39-41 Broughton Street, and will be home to more than 100 bottles of the spirit. It will also offer a range of signature cocktails including inventive twists on classic rum serves. Run by Jamie Shields and Steven Aitken, the independent bar is moving into the space which formerly belonged to the Treacle bar. Shields, said: “Ruma was born, as many good ideas are, over a couple of drinks with a couple of pals. Edinburgh didn’t have a dedicated rum bar – why not? Rum has been growing in popularity every year, and with the growth of Scottish rum distilleries, it was time to remedy that. We’ve got rums from all over the world and some beautiful bottles from right here in Scotland.” Aitken added: “Being home to Scotland’s largest collection of rum is something we’re really proud of. Demonstrating to Edinburgh that rum is a beautiful and versatile spirit is something we are really looking forward to. There’s so many types and variations, offering endless possibilities of what it can do in cocktails.” Shields is a director at Edinburgh’s Summerhall Drinks Lab, which hosts interactive spirits and cocktail tasting sessions and training programmes, and is the chief organiser of the city’s Juniper Festival. He was formerly head of drinks education at Solid Liquids, a mobile bar and events company in the Scottish capital, and founded a further events business, Lucky White Heather Gin Club. Aitken, meanwhile, is a sales executive for distribution business Base Spirits Collective and a director at Flur Cocktail Company in Glasgow. He also spent four and half years in various roles at Arbikie Distillery, including sales manager for the UK.

Wagamama preparing to open in Doncaster: Wagamama, The Restaurant Group-owned brand, is preparing to open a new restaurant in Doncaster. It will open on Monday, 22 April, at the town’s Dome Leisure Centre. The 162-cover restaurant will open daily and create 55 jobs, bringing Wagamama’s total to 163 restaurants across the UK. It follows openings this year in Epsom, Glasgow and Wolverhampton. Further launches in the pipeline include Chatham Maritime and Woodside Leisure Park in Watford, both in May. The business has targeted ten new openings in 2024.

 

Former Michelin-starred restaurant in Surrey village goes on market for £2.5m: Former Michelin-starred restaurant The Clock House in Surrey has been brought to market for a guide price of £2.5m. Savills, on behalf of restauranteur Serina Drake, is marketing the freehold of the property in the village of Ripley. The Clock House, which closed earlier this year, is a two-storey building extending to approximately 6,308 square feet. On the ground floor, the open plan restaurant and private dining room has capacity for 50 people, served by a fitted trade kitchen to the rear. The first floor includes a private reception lounge with bar servery as well as a function room. There is private living accommodation that is accessible via an internal staircase and an external staircase to street level. At attic level, there are two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom that have previously been used for staff. Chris Bickle, director for licensed leisure at Savills Southampton, said: “For the last 20 years, The Clock House was at the pinnacle of Surrey’s dining scene achieving a Michelin star and three-AA rosettes. The recent closure provides an opportunity for a new owner to explore a variety of uses, subject to consents.” 

 

Roxy Leisure confirms May launch for second King Pins site: Roxy Leisure has confirmed it will open a second site in Manchester for its King Pins family bowling concept in May. The operator of Roxy Lanes and Roxy Ball Room opened its debut site under the King Pins concept in Manchester’s Trafford Palazzo last summer, offering 15 lanes of ten-pin bowling and four lanes of duck-pin bowling alongside shuffleboard, ice-free curling, a batting cage, karaoke and arcade games. Propel revealed in November that Roxy Leisure had secured a further site in the city, in the Arndale scheme, which will now open on Friday, 17 May. It will open in a 30,000 square-foot unit previously home to a Sports Direct store. It will offer state-of-the-art ten-pin and duck-pin bowling, karaoke party rooms, arcade games, American pool, shuffleboard, batting cages and ice-free curling, as well as a King Pins debuts for mini golf, tech darts and Wild West shooting. Manchester brand PLY will serve up pizzas while Wings of Power will offer fried or roasted chicken, cauliflower wings, burgers, tenders and more. Royal Treats will bring its signature desserts emporium to the Arndale site, and there will also be a bar with a huge range of draft lager, craft ales, bottles and cans alongside a choice of house and frozen cocktails and no and low-crafted drinks. James Travis, brand manager at King Pins, said: “We can hardly contain our excitement as the opening date draws nearer for our second site. To be joining over 200 brands in one of the UK’s leading shopping and leisure destinations, Manchester Arndale, is an honour.” Last year, Roxy Leisure managing director Matt Jones told Propel the company had another four King Pins sites in major cities and shopping centres in legals and would target six sites within the next two years.