Companies

Greene King reports £273m loss for 2020 financial year

21-Aug-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Suffolk-based brewer and pub operator Greene King has reported losses of more than £270m in the 52 weeks to 26 April 2020 in its latest trading update.

MA's Review of the week

EOTHO helping pubs move towards ‘continental model’ of increased weekday trade

21-Aug-2020 By Ed Bedington

The Morning Advertiser's Ed Bedington speaks with Brewhouse & Kitchen chief executive Kris Gumbrell about the biggest issues from the news this week.

Oakman Inns to receive royal accolade

20-Aug-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Multiple operator Oakman Inns will be presented with an annual Princess Royal Training Award in November.

MA's review of the week

'The biggest issue we face is consumer confidence'

14-Aug-2020 By Ed Bedington

The Morning Advertiser's Ed Bedington speaks with Black Sheep Brewery chairman Andy Slee to talk about the big issues from the news this week.

Brewhouse & Kitchen sales soar 115% during first week of EOTHO

14-Aug-2020 By Stuart Stone

Nationwide brewpub operator Brewhouse & Kitchen has revealed that its sales more than doubled during the first six days of the Government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

Adnams pre-tax losses increase to £3.5m

14-Aug-2020 By Stuart Stone

Suffolk-based brewer and pub operator Adnams has reported further losses as a result of the “serious impact” of the coronavirus crisis on the business.

Still no clarity on nightclub reopening date

14-Aug-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

While the Government has announced a slew of hospitality businesses can now reopen, it has remained tight-lipped on when the late-night sector venues can trade again.

Star Pubs & Bars to scale back tapered rent relief

12-Aug-2020 By Emily Hawkins

Heineken’s pub arm Star Pubs & Bars has outlined the next phase of its tapered rent relief plan for operators throughout September and October - including a further £4m investment in rental concessions.

Tim Martin demands evidence that coronavirus is transmitted in pubs

11-Aug-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

JD Wetherspoon (JDW) boss Tim Martin has called for scientists to publish evidence of coronavirus transmission in pubs and questioned if it exists.

Country Pub Group goes into administration

06-Aug-2020 By Stuart Stone

The operator behind a quartet of pubs in the south west has been placed into administration.

Up to 130 JDW roles ‘at risk of redundancy'

06-Aug-2020 By Stuart Stone

Pub giant JD Wetherspoon (JDW) has notified its entire head office workforce that a possible 110 to 130 positions are at risk of redundancy.

‘Encouraging’ July trading for Loungers

05-Aug-2020 By Stuart Stone

Café-bar operator Loungers has revealed relatively flat year-on-year July trading across its 165-strong stable despite post-lockdown trading restrictions.

MA'S REVIEW OF THE WEEK

Eat Out to Help Out ‘quite a partial, divisive’ move

31-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

The Morning Advertiser's (MA) editor Ed Bedington catches up with Admiral Taverns' Chris Jowsey to discuss what’s grabbed his attention from the week’s headlines.

Wait and see success for pub

31-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

In the final recording of our series following one West Sussex pub through lockdown, MA editor Ed Bedington went back to the Lockhart Tavern in Haywards Heath to find out whether their decision to delay reopening by a few weeks has paid off.

Rock-bottom meals at JDW ‘cheaper than supermarkets’

30-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Pub giant JD Wetherspoon (JDW) is slashing the prices of its dishes to lower than supermarket meal deal prices as a result of the Government’s Eat Out to Help Out Scheme.

Coronavirus puts £10m dent in Fuller’s figures

30-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Fuller, Smith and Turner is in a ‘stronger position than many’ according to its chief executive, despite the coronavirus’ estimated eight-figure impact on company trading.

Blackrose targets 200 new sites by the end of 2021

29-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Aprirose-owned pub management company, Blackrose, has announced five appointments as part of plans to build an estate of close to 250-sites by the end of 2021.

Liberation Group reshuffles senior team

29-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Channel Islands-based pub company the Liberation Group has announced the creation of two new senior roles as part of its response to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Brains Brewery prepares for Welsh reopening

28-Jul-2020 By Emily Hawkins

Brains Brewery has outlined its plans to support the recovery of its pubs ahead of their reopening next week.

City Pub Group trading at two thirds of previous sales levels

27-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Multiple operator City Pub Group has reported like-for-like sales were at 63% of previous levels and total sales for the three weeks since reopening half its estate on 4 July were £1.8m.

All Tavern Propco tenants will have ‘tailored solutions and recovery plans’

27-Jul-2020 By Nicholas Robinson

Bosses at Tavern Propco have assured The Morning Advertiser (MA) all its tenants will receive “workable” and “tailored solutions” for their rent issues following the coronavirus lockdown.

Craft Union Pubco opens doors of 5 pubs after £1m investment

24-Jul-2020 By Emily Hawkins

Craft Union Pub Company has opened five new sites following an investment of more than £1m.

'We rely very heavily on offices being back at work'

24-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

The Morning Advertiser's (MA) editor Ed Bedington catches up with Fuller's Simon Emeny to discuss what’s grabbed his attention from the week’s headlines.

£2m support pledged to Greene King independent pubs

23-Jul-2020 By Nicholas Robinson

Greene King has made £2m in support loans available to its 6,500 independent free-trade pubs as part of its 'Bounce-Back' measures.

Robinsons pumps £1m into Macclesfield pub

23-Jul-2020 By Nicholas Robinson

Brewer and pub operator Robinsons has announced the reopening of the Flower Pot in Macclesfield after ploughing £1m into the venue as part of a long-term plan to invest in its 250-strong stable.

Manchester's Deaf Institute and Gorilla saved from closure

23-Jul-2020 By Emily Hawkins

Two notable Manchester music venues, The Deaf Institute and Gorilla, have been saved from closure after acquisition by Tokyo Industries.

Pub company co-owned by Stuart Broad registers ‘pleasing and humbling’ post-lockdown innings

22-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Co-founded by cricketers Harry Gurney and current England international Stuart Broad, the Midlands-based Cat & Wickets Pub Company has recorded stronger than expected takings straight off the bat after reopening on 4 July.

Paul Ainsworth and Candice Brown wade in on no-shows debate

21-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Celebrity pub operators Paul Ainsworth and Candice Brown have outlined the impact no-shows have on hospitality on breakfast television.

Little interview

Pub operator wants taxpayer money ‘spent somewhere else’ after successfully diversifying trade

21-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

A Norfolk pub operator plans to eschew further taxpayer-funded Government support for his site after registering year-on-year growth under a diversified business model since lockdown.

JDW pumps £2.6m into new site

20-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Pub behemoth JD Wetherspoon (JDW) is set to open a new site in Leeds this week (Tuesday 21 July) after spending £2.6m developing the venue.

MA500

‘We aren’t out of the woods yet’

20-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Urban-based operators voiced their concerns for city centre businesses amid reopening and looking ahead due to rules on public transport and customers wanting to stay local.

MA500

How have operators with sites in Europe coped with coronavirus?

20-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Learning from different regulations set by local governments in countries across Europe has been helpful for one multiple operator when reopening its sites in the UK.

Rileys Sports Bars seeks buyer after entering administration

20-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Insolvency specialists are seeking a buyer for Rileys Sports Bars after the pool and snooker hall chain fell into administration amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

MA500

Late-night operators ‘desperate for clarity on reopening’

17-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Two wet-led late-night businesses have voiced their concerns about not having any Government guidance on when or how they can reopen.

MA’s review of the week

Consumers will have a difficult time deciphering the purpose of face masks

17-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

The Morning Advertiser's (MA) editor Ed Bedington catches up with The Alchemist’s Simon Potts to discuss what’s grabbed his attention from the week’s headlines.

MA500

UKH boss: 'Trade support cannot stop now'

17-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

UKHospitality (UKH) chief executive Kate Nicholls has called for the Government to continue to support the trade into next year.

St Austell appoints Georgina Young as brewing director

16-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Georgina Young will oversee brewing and operations at both St Austell Brewery and Bath Ales as the Cornish brewer and pub operator’s new brewing director.

Little Interview

After a decade in the trade running a post-lockdown pub ‘feels like a new job’

16-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Despite celebrating his tenth year at the Castle Inn in Skipton, North Yorkshire, during lockdown, operator Calvin Dow feels like a new-starter running his reopened pub under the Government’s ‘Covid-secure’ guidance.

Loungers to fully reopen 165-site estate by 5 August

16-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Café-bar operator Loungers plans to accelerate the reopening of its Lounge and Cosy Club sites off the back of positive post-lockdown trading.

Majority of customers feel safe returning to pubs

15-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Almost all (99%) customers said they felt safe visiting a pub while 98% felt comfortable about returning to one in the future, a new survey has found.

JDW hits back at ‘misleading customers about cheaper beer’ claims

14-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

JD Wetherspoon (JDW) has responded to claims from the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and the Society for Independent Brewers (SIBA) that the pub group’s marketing materials for its price cut could “potentially mislead customers”.

Return of consumer confidence key to triggering investment in the hospitality sector

14-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

Restored consumer confidence is the key to boosting levels of investment in the hospitality sector after a 6% – roughly £800m – year-on-year hit according to OakNorth Bank’s senior debt finance director.

Punch boss cautiously optimistic, but calls for more support for wet pubs

14-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

Running a pub company when the pubs are closed was always going to be difficult, admits Punch Pubs & Co CEO Clive Chesser, who described the coronavirus crisis as the “most challenging period of my career to date”.

Brewhouse & Kitchen report like-for-like boost in reopening week

13-Jul-2020 By Emily Hawkins

Brewpub group Brewhouse & Kitchen has reported a 2.9% like-for-like sales growth in its first week trading after the Covid-19 shutdown.

Little interview

Pub atmosphere has been ‘much more civilised’ since lockdown

13-Jul-2020 By Stuart Stone

The owner of an award-winning clifftop Cornish pub in Crantock near Newquay claims Government guidelines for hospitality operators have created a ‘much more civilised atmosphere’ at her pub post-lockdown.

Kerridge slams ‘disgraceful’ no shows

13-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Celebrity chef and pub operator Tom Kerridge has hit out at customers who failed to show at his London venue.

JDW U-turns on price rise

13-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Pub giant JD Wetherspoon (JDW) has announced it will be reducing food and drink prices across its pub estate a week after it revealed that they were set to increase.

How have pubs adapted to the 'new normal'?

10-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

With pub across the UK now starting to reopen, The Morning Advertiser spoke to a few operators across Surrey and Sussex about their experience of opening up on 4 July.

Changes afoot at Oakman Inns

10-Jul-2020 By Nikkie Thatcher

Multiple operator Oakman Inns has announced board changes and an update on how its pubs have traded since reopening last weekend (Saturday 4 July).

MA’s review of the week

‘Dramatic’ headlines unrealised as pub sector reopens well

10-Jul-2020 By Ed Bedington

The Morning Advertiser's (MA) editor Ed Bedington hosts a chat with St Austell Brewery’s Kevin Georgel to find out what’s grabbed his attention from the week’s headlines.