Other operators

Late night sector

'Impossible' licensing climate blamed for closure of much-loved Hackney club

11-Apr-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Hackney-based club and bar Dance Tunnel has announced it will close for good in August, blaming the ‘impossible’ licensing climate in the borough. 

Cider

Seven innovations in cider

11-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Cider makers are set to launch new products during the coming weeks in a bid to make a successful play of the, hopefully, warm and dry weather this summer. In the meantime, we look back on seven of the top cider trends that snatched our attention over...

My shout

Tenant research: Building relationships is key to success

11-Apr-2016 By Andy Hodgson, Admiral Taverns

For the tenanted and leased sector, the annual MCA Tenant Track survey provides an excellent independent benchmark, widely recognised as the most comprehensive and accurate assessment of licensee opinion. 

Coffee

‘Sexy’ baristas important for consumers' choice in coffee venue

07-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

'People watching' and attractive baristas are two of the most important qualities customers look for when seeking a coffee venue, according to research from Brita.

Beer

Innis & Gunn pumps £3.1m into Perth brewery acquisition

07-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Scottish brewing giant Innis & Gunn has bought Perth-based Inveralmond Brewery Limited after raising £3.1m for the acquisition and is set to pump a significant amount into its redevelopment as a new product development brewery.

Punch director: 'Are your staff empowered to give great customer service?'

07-Apr-2016 By Paul Pavli, Punch

I was fortunate enough to enjoy a fantastic customer service experience recently. In fact it was so good, I can't stop telling everyone about it and now I'm about to tell you too…

Openings

Fuller's plans for closed former music venue given go-ahead

06-Apr-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Southwark council have given the green light to Fuller’s plans to renovate former live music venue the Half Moon in Herne Hill, south-east London.

Gallery

Pictures: Pub openings - March 2016

05-Apr-2016 By Oli Gross

The Publican's Morning Advertiser looks at pubs which were opened and renovated up and down the country in March 2016.

Beer

BrewDog to increase capacity and pubs after profits reach £16.9m

05-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

BrewDog will continue to increase its beer production capacity and add to its portfolio of pubs, the Scottish brewer and operator has said in an annual report for the year ending 2015, which revealed gross profits up £5m to £16.9m.

Beer

Meantime invests in sales team after CEO Miller steps down

05-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

SABMiller-owned Meantime Brewing Company has announced plans to bolster its sales team, just days after Nick Miller stepped down as the firm’s CEO.

Beer

Thornbridge announces £2m investment to make more beer

05-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Thornbridge Brewery has announced a £2m investment plan, which will see the installation of a new bottling line, an increase in brewing capacity and improved logistical and warehousing facilities.

Beer

Innis & Gunn reveals French distribution partnership

05-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Scottish specialty beer supplier Innis & Gunn has announced a partnership with Spanish family-owned Grupo Diego Zamora to supply their respective drinks brands to the French market.

Comment: Will good things come to those who wait?

05-Apr-2016 By Mike Berry

For tied tenants and their campaigners, the wait for reform and a pub statutory code of practice has been a lengthy and frequently frustrating one.

Beer

Batemans invests in free-trade sales team

01-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Family brewer Batemans has significantly invested in its sales team ahead of its sales boosting free-trade relaunch.

Legislation

Government announces shock smoking ban U-turn

01-Apr-2016 By Philip Morris

The Government has made a shock decision to reverse the smoking ban for one day only so pubs can celebrate the Queen’s birthday “in style” this summer.

Heineken launches major new talent-grabbing scheme

01-Apr-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Heineken is making a massive attempt to attract new talent into its business with a new campaign to show it’s not just a beer and cider manufacturer.

Wholesalers

Booker’s total group sales up by more than 10%

31-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Booker's group sales for the fourth quarter (Q4) rose by 10.6% for the 12 weeks to 25 March 2016, with its foodservice arms putting in a strong performance, resulting in high praise from City analysts.

NLW

PMA survey: Only 20% see the new national living wage as positive

30-Mar-2016 By Mike Berry

Only one fifth of licensees think the new national living wage (NLW) is a positive development for the pub trade, an exclusive poll of Publican’s Morning Advertiser (PMA) readers has revealed.

Beer

UK imports of US craft beer up

29-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Imports of US craft beer in the UK are on the up, as brewers in the States announce a global rise in exports of 16.3% for last year, according to new figures from the Brewers Association (BA).

Carlsberg’s new Strawberry & Rhubarb cider available on draft

29-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Carlsberg will expand the Somersby cider portfolio with the addition of a new draft Strawberry & Rhubarb flavour, the beer and cider giant has revealed.

Chips: sure fry way to boost gross profit

29-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

There’s more to chips than you might expect and, if potatoes can boost your profits, it’s definitely worth taking note. Nicholas Robinson reports

BrewDog’s newly named spirits division to launch in April

29-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

BrewDog’s newly named Lone Wolf Distillery spirits division is likely to launch in April, the Scottish brewer and pub operator has revealed almost two years after announcing plans to enter the category.

Advice

How to deal with the National Living Wage

29-Mar-2016 By Mike Berry

Comment and advice from licensees, multiple operators and pubcos on how best to deal with the National Living Wage.

Legislation

Top tips for licensees on dealing with the National Living Wage

29-Mar-2016 By PMA

How to deal with the introduction of the National Living Wage and make it work successfully for your business.

Analysis

The National Living Wage: How is it going to impact pubs?

29-Mar-2016 By Mike Berry

The new National Living Wage (NLW) comes into force on 1 April and for many licensees will be as welcome as a bad prank on April Fool’s Day.

New openings

Star Pubs & Bars launches latest Newcastle food pub

24-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Star Pubs & Bars has opened its newest north-east, tenanted, food-led pub following a £430,000 joint investment with operator Cosy Dove Limited.

city news

Miller to step down as Meantime CEO

23-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

SABMiller has appointed Laura Edwards from Miller Brands as general manager for Meantime Brewing Company, who will continue to run the firm as a stand-alone business, following outgoing CEO Nick Miller's move to step down later this month.

Dardis to succeed Goodyear as Young's CEO

22-Mar-2016 By MCA

Young’s has announced that Patrick Dardis, the company’s current retail director, will succeed Stephen Goodyear as chief executive at the end of its AGM on 5 July 2016.

Pubs

Award-winning Enterprise pub still destined for demolition

21-Mar-2016 By Roger Protz

The Bree Louise has won plenty of awards - but its future could be one of demolition thanks to the development of High Speed Rail 2 (HS2).

Beer

Meantime reveals five-strong seasonal beer offer

21-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

The Meantime Brewing Company has revealed its five-strong seasonal beer offering for the year ahead, including brews for summer, autumn and winter.

Britvic soft drinks review

Premiumisation helps lift soft drink sales in the on-trade

21-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Soft drinks sales in the licensed and leisure channel grew by 3.2% in volume to 1.9bn litres last year, with trends such as all-day dining, premiumisation and food-led socialising driving the uplift, according to Britvic’s latest soft drinks review.

Food safety

Rare burger risk warnings ‘not enough to save you in court’

21-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Warning pub customers about the potential dangers of ordering and eating high-risk foods – such as oysters and rare burgers – is unlikely to be enough of a defence to stave off prosecution in the event of legal action.

Budget 2016

Britvic boss ‘surprised and ‘disappointed’ by sugar levy

21-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Britvic will continue to reformulate its soft drinks in line with targets the company set for itself before the government-announced sugar levy last week, managing director of Britvic Great Britain Paul Graham has said.

Guinness World Record for beer tasting broken at Publican Awards

16-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

A world record for the most people carrying out a beer tasting in one room was officially broken at last night's (15 March) Publican Awards, Guinness World Records revealed.

Pensions

Pension checklist: What you need to know about auto-enrolment

15-Mar-2016 By Ben Winstanley

Pension auto-enrolment is a term that strikes dread into the many uninitiated licensees who are fast approaching the deadline for setting up a scheme. Ben Winstanley finds out what you really need to know.

BrewDog close Dog Eat Dog site to 'evolve new offering'

14-Mar-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Consumers have questioned the closure of BrewDog’s first hotdog concept, Dog Eat Dog, in London’s Islington less than five months after it launched.

Beer

Admiral partners with There's A Beer For That campaign

09-Mar-2016 By Mike Berry

Admiral Taverns is teaming up with the There’s A Beer For That campaign to help its tenants and lessees boost beer sales in their pubs.

Operators

Brewdog: Twitter storm over James Watt's appearance on TV show Who's the Boss

09-Mar-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Brewdog co-founder James Watt has come under fire after appearing on BBC TV programme Who’s the Boss, which sees bosses give existing staff the power to employee a new manager.

News analysis

Is this the end of the Sunday roast?

07-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

The decision by managed pub chain giant JD Wetherspoon to axe the Sunday roast has sent shock waves through the trade. Nicholas Robinson finds out if the reverberations will hit other pubs too

Big pub chains ‘losing their grip’ on the pub industry

04-Mar-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Smaller pub companies are growing at twice the rate of the large chains and have seen their turnover grow by almost 30% in the last five years according to findings from Ortus Secured Finance.

Bidvest Foodservice snaps up Caterfood

04-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Bidvest Foodservice has acquired the south-west-based distributor Caterfood in a bid to strengthen its reach, after the Publican’s Morning Advertiser (PMA) revealed the company's plans to continue its expansion.

Podcast

Ice boss: ‘Don’t shun frozen food as inferior, embrace its money-saving qualities’

02-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Frozen food should not be shunned by pub chefs who fear using non-fresh produce will taint their offer, but should embrace its nutritious and money-saving qualities.

Events

Exciting new trade show - The Bar & Pub Show - launches

02-Mar-2016 By Mike Berry

A new event dedicated to the bar and pub sector will run alongside this year's Restaurant Show at Olympia bringing together the best suppliers in the business with top operators that are transforming the UK’s on-trade.

THE BIG INTERVIEW

Young's' executive chef Chris Knights: rise of casual dining was 'double-edged sword'

02-Mar-2016 By Daniel Woolfson

The chef world has changed immeasurably since Chris Knights was peeling potatoes in the kitchen of his mum's pub at age 13.

Suppliers

Bidvest Foodservice reveals growth plans and biggest competitors

01-Mar-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Bidvest Foodservice will continue to acquire businesses and launch new sites to grow its customer reach, chief executive officer Andrew Selley has told the Publican’s Morning Advertiser (PMA).

My shout

"Publicans are working harder than ever"...Star Pubs MD, Lawson Mountstevens

01-Mar-2016 By Lawson Mountstevens

There have never been more pressures on the great British pub.

London

Campaigners and pub operator battle over plans to reopen iconic Camden pub

29-Feb-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Campaigners and pub company Ruth and Robinson are locking horns over plans to redevelop Camden’s the Black Cap pub, which was closed amid heated protests last April.

Fowl Mouths’ Japanese comfort food stay at Clapham pub King & Co extended

29-Feb-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Japanese comfort food pop-up Fowl Mouths has extended its residency at Clapham pub the King & Co to the end of March, following demand from the sell-out concept's growing fan base.

Mother’s Day is ‘bigger than Christmas’ for pubs

29-Feb-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

More than half of UK families (64%) head to the pub for food on Mother's Day, according to the most recent figures from Carlsberg UK's Consumer Insight Report.

Twisted Burger boosts the Yard’s food sales by 50%, but could rise to 300%

29-Feb-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Food sales at Yorkshire pub the Yard, Ilkley, have rocketed by more than 50% since the franchise Twisted Burger launched there in early February, the Publican’s Morning Advertiser (PMA) has learnt.