Food and room sales lift profits at Fuller’s pubs June 6, 2014 BREWER Fuller, Smith & Turner yesterday reported a jump in profit before tax of 10 per cent to £34.1m, for the year ended 29 March. The company made strong gains from food and accommodation, with like-for-like sales rising in both areas by 10.4 per cent. Revenue climbed six per cent to £288m, while the final [...]
Wetherspoon breaks ties with Heineken after supplier dispute December 9, 2014 BRITISH pub chain JD Wetherspoon announced yesterday that it would no longer sell Heineken products at any of its 926 pubs across the UK and Ireland, following a dispute between the companies. The Watford-based pub operator said the Dutch brewer had refused to supply its own-brand lager and Murphy’s Stout to Wetherspoon’s new pub in [...]
Code to protect pubs could see 500 shut down June 3, 2014 OVER 500 pubs could close as part of the government’s proposals to protect publicans with a statutory code to govern their relationship with large pub companies. Britain’s 25,000 tenanted pubs will be given the power to challenge the biggest pub landlords. The government admitted that this change could lead to closures in the already struggling [...]
Woolworths redundancy case: European Court of Justice decision good for business, lawyers say April 30, 2015 British businesses breathed a sigh of relief this morning after the European Court of Justice ruled in favour of the UK government in the controversial Woolworths redundancy case. The case dates back to Woolworth's demise in 2008 (and subsequently 2010, when it also affected former Ethel Austin staff), when more than 4,000 employees did [...]
Investors balk at pub landlord’s debt restructure May 27, 2014 DISGRUNTLED investors wiped almost 30 per cent off the value of Punch Taverns yesterday after the indebted pub company said it is nearing a deal to restructure its £2.3bn debt mountain, which could see it offer bondholders a debt for equity deal. “We’ve made substantial progress with groups including the ABI,” said a person close [...]
Wetherspoons warns on April pub slowdown May 7, 2014 JD WETHERSPOON yesterday warned that slowing sales in April had left it cautious concerning its final quarter, despite reporting higher third-quarter sales. The pub chain said that sales for the 13 weeks to 27 April at pubs open over a year rose 6.2 per cent, although April had missed its own expectations. “As a result [...]
Wetherspoon’s sales flat over Christmas January 21, 2015 TIM MARTIN’S pub chain JD Wetherspoon said yesterday that sales had slowed significantly in its second quarter, blaming cheap supermarket prices for keeping bar receipts flat over the festive season. The company’s stock dropped over two per cent in trading following the news.
Top London restaurant openings: Our favourite new dining spots so far this year April 7, 2015 THE IVY CHELSEA GARDEN 195-197 King's Road, SW3 5EDtheivychelseagarden.com, 020 3301 0300 It’s not long until The Ivy’s flagship restaurant re-opens – until then you can dine in its new, more informal cousin on The King’s Road. BAO Lexington St Soho, W1F 9ASbaolondon.com, 020 7287 5724 “Bao” is a type of fluffy [...]
Kitchen Nightmare: Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay loses High Court battle over father-in-law forgery claims January 20, 2015 Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has lost a High Court battle with his father-in-law, over the rent of a £640,000-a-year London pub. Ramsay had claimed that Christopher Hutcheson had used a “ghost-writing” machine to forge his signature on a property deal for the York & Albany Pub near Regent's Park without his authorisation. The [...]
Prosecco on tap? How terribly gauche (and illegal), the Italians say January 8, 2015 Prosecco on tap. Sounds great to us, but according to the producers of Italy's answer to Champagne it's not only gauche, it's also illegal. The Prosecco DOC Consortium doesn't pop its cork for every drinking establishment it sees – British pubs specifically, where the drink is available on tap. The situation has [...]