City Comment: Hamish Champ
Operating drinking establishments on the nation's high streets is not for the faint-hearted. Regent Inns's Bob Ivell suggested as much this week, pointing to recent events at rival operators.
On the face of it Regent itself has done reasonably well in recent months, aided and abetted by the World Cup. After all, as Ivell noted, you'd expect a sports bar chain to do OK from the world's most popular sporting event. Walkabout, for example, saw positive like-for-like growth since the New Year and doubtless had a cracking June, what with all those Down Under types cheering on the Socceroos.
But reading between the lines some analysts question the minimal decline that Regent argues has been the case. One, Oriel Securities's Mark Brumby, suggests that the overall 0.4 per cent trading decline since the beginning of January - boosted by "jolly June" - actually equated to a monthly decline of around nine per cent.
Regent shareholders, meanwhile, are said to be fully behind the company, despite the rollercoaster ride they've been through recently. This may well be the case, but Ivell - and his backers - will be hoping "consolidation opportunities" of either hue appear on the horizon soon.
Elsewhere, JD Wetherspoon appears to have improved its position somewhat. The chain's demographics don't bode particularly well for a smoke-free future, but the group has made strides to broaden its appeal, pointing to a increased product range which includes everything from coffee and breakfasts to numerous spirits and cask ales.
Numbers that covered the World Cup - an event which didn't sit especially well with the group, despite an influx of plasma screens - suggest that it is getting something right. However, the looming smoking ban in England remains a cloud on future earnings, as do rising utility costs.
As for club operator Luminar, well, it'll be longing for the cold, dark nights of winter and some hot dance records...
My recent comments regarding barstaff returning loose change from a round of drinks on a silver tray triggered a tide of support from those rejecting (rightly, in my view) the impersonal touch. But in Spain, which I toured earlier this month astride my trusty Triumph, the practice is commonplace, even being regarded as a courtesy of the highest order. Cultural differences, eh?
