PROPERTY ROUND-UP
Roxy Leisure & Inception Group to launch sites
Inception Group takes Borough Market site
Inception Group, which operates the Mr Fogg’s brand, has signed a lease at Borough Market to open its 15th site – with the proposed concept to be announced later this year.
The operator of “unique and eclectic hospitality concepts across London” has signed on a site in London’s Borough Yards at 20 Stoney Street.
Inception Group co-founder Charlie Gilkes said: “We are so excited to have signed the lease to this amazing, characterful site situated within an old railway arch.”
He continued: “It’s located at the heart of Borough Market and we have exciting plans for a very original bar concept in this world-famous destination.”
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JW Lees takes over ex-Marston's site
Manchester-based operator and brewer JW Lees has announced the completion of its purchase of the Pointing Dog pub from Marston’s.
The Cheadle pub will benefit from a £300,000 refurbishment before reopening to the public on Friday 14 July.
Managing director of JW Lees William Lees-Jones said: “We are delighted to have purchased the Pointing Dog off Marston’s plc and to welcome new colleagues to the JW Lees Team.
“We were disappointed not to have bought it in 2017 when it was bought by Marston’s Revere Pub Company since we have always liked the site and are keen to grow our footprint in the North West as we continue to build our 195-year old six generation family business.”
The Pointing Dog will operate as part of the JW Lees Inns & Hotels Division and will be run under direct management by JW Lees, which operates 46 managed pubs, inns and hotels as well as letting another 95 pubs under JW Lees Pub Partners.
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Rogers announces launch of long-awaited pub
Former Guinea Grill legend Oisín Rogers has teamed up with the founder of Flat Iron to open a new London pub that they hope will take the capital by storm.
Rogers, who carved out a reputation while working for the famous Youngs’ site, has teamed up with Charlie Carroll to open the Devonshire, a new pub and restaurant behind Piccadilly Circus this Autumn.
A former Jamie Oliver site, the pub in Denham Street has been extensively renovated to create what the pair describe as a “top quality pub” honouring the building history as an inn since 1793, while an upstairs 150 cover restaurant will feature a wood-ember grill.
Described as “highly ambitious” and a concept the duo have discussed for years, the restaurant, which spreads across three floors, will feature Scotch beef, dry-aged and butchered on site, with the menu featuring dry-aged rib chops, filets, and Guinness and beef skirt suet puddings.
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Star ploughs £6.8m into outdoor makeovers
Star Pubs & Bars is investing £6.8m in developing premium outdoor areas and revamping pub exterior in 2023, benefitting 220 pubs.
The investment leverages Star’s partnership with Heineken, creating a series of gardens themed with the company’s cider and beer brands.
Some 70 pubs will be given upgraded outside eating and drinking areas. The new garden layouts will also expand the number of covers and extend the outdoor season to nine months a year.
Following a successful trial in 2022, £1m is being allocated to branding 50 of the gardens with one of four Heineken products – Inch’s, Moretti, Beavertown or Heineken – that best complements each pub’s style.
Star Pubs & Bars property director Chris Moore said: “Many people invested in their own gardens during the pandemic and their expectations are higher than ever when it comes to sitting out at the pub."
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Roxy Leisure to open in Cheltenham for its 17th site
Experiential operator Roxy Leisure is set to open a competitive gaming concept in Cheltenham in August 2023 – marking its 17th UK site.
Roxy Lanes Cheltenham will feature an exciting range of activities including ten-pin bowling, American pool, air hockey, duckpin bowling, a batting cage, karaoke, basketball, shuffleboard, darts and more than 50 arcade games, including basketball machines.
The venue is family-friendly and will open seven days a week with under-18s welcome, when accompanied by an adult, until 7pm on Sunday to Friday and until 5pm on Saturdays.
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Hydes invests £3.6m to turn police station into pub
North West brewery and pub retailer Hydes has ploughed £3.6m into a new site in Heswall, on the Wirral, Merseyside, set to open later this year.
The Salford-based brewery will transform the town’s former police station into a premium dining and drinking establishment that will be named The Harry Beswick in honour of the building’s original architect.
The £1.3m acquisition of the building is Hydes’ first property acquisition in more than five years.
Hydes Brewery managing director Adam Mayers said: “The Harry Beswick is a great location in a stunningly designed building boasting real history and character. Heswall is a thriving area and launching the Harry Beswick opens us up to new audiences.
“We are working hard to make sure the Harry Beswick will deliver a great experience for customers in the area with a quality, contemporary new design scheme and feel combined with a premium dining and drinking experience and Hydes’ standards of customer service.”
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Tap & Run innings set to resume
Cricket stars Stuart Broad and Harry Gurney have set a date for the reopening of their Tap & Run pub after fire destroyed the site in June last year.
The Upper Broughton pub, on the Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire border, is set to reopen on Monday 26 June – more than a year after it was forced to close – and, at the time, the owners were nervously waiting on a decision by its insurance company to accept liability.
Some £1.3m has been spent on the restoration and renovation of the pub following the fire, which was a result of laundry igniting in the tumble dryer.
Managing director of parent business The Cat & Wickets Pub Company, Harry Gurney, who has played cricket for England, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire, explained how it felt to have the company’s first pub almost back online: “It’s a big relief because it’s been a long process and there are periods where you’re working on the finance behind the scene and liaising with insurers and periods where it feels a million miles away – but to be on the home straight is really exciting.”
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