Luminar loses finance chief

Luminar, the nightclub operator, has announced it is set to lose its finance chief, Nick Beighton.

Beighton is resigning from the group after three years in the role, which he took up after joining from Matalan, the discount clothing and household goods chain.

In a statement Luminar said it was currently agreeing the details of his departure and that Beighton would provide a handover to his successor who, it hoped, would be named "shortly".

A spokesman for Luminar said Beighton was leaving simply to take up a new job, rather than as a consequence of any conflict over the group's direction.

"It was his first job as a finance director and these things happen," he added. "He came from the retail sector and he's going back to retail. There was no falling out with [Luminar chief executive] Stephen Thomas."

In January Luminar said trading over the Christmas period had been below its expectations, with an increase in admissions on key nights being offset by a fall in per-head spending.