Exclusive – Stonegate to cut support function roles to reflect decrease in size of managed estate: Stonegate Group, the UK’s largest pub company, is set to reorganise its support functions to reflect the continued growth of its leased and tenanted (Pub Partners) and Craft Union divisions, and a decrease in the size of its managed estate, Propel has learned. It is understood that the circa 4,500-strong company is consulting on around 150 roles after seeing its managed estate cut in size from circa 800 to around 500 sites over the course of the last two years. In April, David McDowall, chief executive of Stonegate, told Propel that the business had seen improved trading in the second quarter to date. It came after Propel reported Stonegate saw turnover increase to £1,747,000 for the year ending 29 September 2024 compared to £1,719,000 the year before. Of the 2024 figure, the managed segment contributed £974m (2023: £1.01bn), while the leased and tenanted pubs – being pub partners and commercial property – together contributed £440m (2023: £427m), and the operator-led segment contributed £333m (2023: £281m). Managed like-for-likes were down 0.3% (2023: up 3%), operator-led like-for-likes increased 1.9% (2023: up 10.3%) and leased and tenanted like-for-likes grew 3.3% (2023: up 5.5%). On the cut in support function roles, a Stonegate spokesperson told Propel: “Over the past two years, the size of our managed estate has decreased, while our Pub Partners and Craft Union divisions have grown, necessitating a smaller central support function. This, combined with rising costs, particularly after the recent Budget, means we must reorganise our support functions to reflect the shape of our business today. We recognise that this is a difficult time, and we are committed to supporting our colleagues with care and fairness as we consult with the business on the proposed changes.” Stonegate features in the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book, which is available exclusively to Premium Club members. The latest edition was released yesterday (Friday, 13 June), featuring 1,125 companies. Stonegate’s turnover of £1,747,000,000 for the year to 24 September 2024 is the seventh highest in the database. 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.

Propel to release Experiential Leisure Report 2025, with 43,000 words, on Friday, 1 August – pre-order now: The 2025 Experiential Leisure Report, the second year of Propel’s exhaustive report on the fast-growing experiential leisure market, will be published on Friday, 1 August at 9am. The report profiles the current shape of the experiential leisure market – including brands, estate size, trading type and geographical location and future trends. It includes opinion from leading players Juliette Keyte, marketing director at Red Engine, Richard Beese, co-founder of We Do Play, and Lisa Boden, partner at investor Edition Capital, and provides a detailed list of UK experiential leisure companies including key staff and Companies House information. The report includes 197 companies, marking a 10% growth in the sector since last year’s study, with 3,700 sites. Katherine Doggrell, Propel’s editorial advisor and the report’s author, said: “The experiential leisure sector is a major growth driver of the hospitality sector, with the market maturing into overseas expansion and franchising as it continues to build and inspire the rest of the market. With trends such as padel keeping the segment fresh, this report hears from operators and investors as they try to anticipate the next innovations. This report delivers an exhaustive overview to all those interested in this influential sector.” The report will be released on Friday, 1 August at 9am and is available for £595 plus VAT to pre-order now. Existing Premium Club subscribers can receive it on Friday, 1 August for £395 plus VAT. The report will be made available for free to existing Premium subscribers on Wednesday, 10 September at 9am. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to order a copy.

Greggs CEO Roisin Currie made a CBE: Greggs chief executive Roisin Currie has been made a CBE in the King’s Birthday Honours 2025, for services to hospitality. Currie joined Greggs from Asda in 2010 to lead its people division and became the circa 2,600-strong brand’s chief executive at the start of 2022. Under her leadership, Greggs has continued to grow rapidly across the UK and has set its sights on exceeding 3,000 shops, as well as continuing its community work that now sees it supporting more than 1,000 Greggs breakfast clubs around the UK. Paul Flaum, chief executive of Warner Leisure Hotels’ parent company Bourne Leisure, and former chief executive of Whitbread Restaurants, was awarded an OBE for services to the hospitality, travel and leisure industries, and to Holocaust education and charity. Other members of the hospitality industry recognised include Andrew Love, former chairman of the Ritz London, who was made an OBE for services to hospitality, and Sunita Arora, co-founder of the Arora Group, which owns and operates hotels across the UK, who received an OBE for services to the charitable sector and philanthropy.

Richard Caring hits suppliers with mandatory ‘discount’ amid £1bn sale talks: The Richard Caring restaurant empire, which includes the Ivy Collection and Caprice Holdings, has demanded its suppliers take a 2.5% “discount”, blaming “increased tax burden and cost of employment, cost of indirect products [and] services and also direct cost of food and beverage”. In a letter dated 3 June, signed by Caring’s head of indirect and beverage procurement Jeremy Evans, the company said: “Our businesses work hard to mitigate cost wherever possible in order to maintain value for money and relevance to their guests. If our businesses are strong and growing, then we hope your business will also benefit. To ensure our businesses can remain strong, we will apply a 2.5% discount on supplier accounts at point of payment. This mandatory discount is being applied in response to the current increased cost of trading. We are asking all of our supplier partners to work with us as we support each other through this difficult period. The discount will be applied from the next available pay run and will remain in place until further notice.” A company spokesperson told City AM: “The letter makes it very clear if any suppliers have any concerns, they should contact us and we will speak with them.” The move comes amid reports Caring is in advanced talks to sell a significant portion of his UK hospitality empire – which includes The Ivy Collection and London private members’ club Annabel’s – to an entity controlled by the Abu Dhabi royal Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan. The FT reported that talks between Caring and Sheikh Tahnoon’s holding company IHC may result in a deal that could exceed more than £1bn. Latest accounts show Caprice Holdings saw pre-tax profit grow from £29m to £37.6m for the year ending 31 December 2023 while revenue increased from £302.9m to £314.7m. Caring owns up to a 50% stake in the business, with other shareholders including the former Qatari prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin-Jaber al-Thani. One industry expert told City AM they believe the letter to suppliers could be a bid to improve margins to help bolster the company’s chances of achieving its ambitious sale.

Pizza Hut Restaurants rolling out new digital ordering systems, to cut workforce: Pizza Hut Restaurants UK, which was acquired out of administration earlier this year by investment firm Directional Capital, is rolling out new digital ordering screens across all 136 of its sites. The business, which employs circa 3,000 staff, told Propel that digital ordering and kiosks were “already delivering results” but that “as part of this journey, we are adapting our staffing model, particularly within our front of house teams”. It is thought that this could lead to up to 120 roles being cut. Emily Curtis, spokesperson for Directional Pizza, told Propel: “We have implemented new technologies, such as digital ordering and kiosks, which are already delivering results – improving the customer experience and boosting sales, with over 60% of in-store orders now placed through digital channels. Like many hospitality businesses responding to changing consumer preferences, we’ve invested heavily in these innovations and have had to evolve team member roles accordingly to remain agile and future-fit, delivering great pizza with great service, every time. As part of this journey, we are adapting our staffing model, particularly within our front of house teams. While these decisions are never easy, they are necessary to ensure we continue meeting customer expectations and remain competitive in an increasingly digital marketplace. We are committed to supporting affected team members and will be working closely with those impacted to explore opportunities to redeploy their skills elsewhere within the broader Pizza Hut network.” The company behind Pizza Hut’s restaurants in Britain owed more than £50m as it collapsed before being rescued, it has been revealed. Heart With Smart was saved in January by an entity controlled by investment firm Directional Capital in a deal that saw 139 Pizza Hut Restaurants acquired, and led to the closure of one Pizza Hut site and three Itsu franchise sites. The new owner was the brand’s main partner in Denmark and Sweden, while Heart With Smart was Pizza Hut’s dine-in franchise partner in the UK. Propel revealed in January that Directional Capital paid £10m to acquire Heart With Smart.