Geronimo snaps up six pubs from Punch Taverns July 13, 2009 LONDON pub operator Geronimo Inns yesterday snapped up six sites from heavily indebted Punch Taverns for an undisclosed sum. Geronimo Inns, backed by private equity firm Penta Capital, said it plans “a significant capital expenditure programme of £1.5m,” and around 70 jobs would be created as a result of the deal. The six pubs, currently [...]
CITY VIEWS: HAVE YOU SEEN A DECLINE IN CITY PUB DRINKING IN THE DOWNTURN? July 22, 2009 RAQUEL FERNANDEZ ALIUM PARTNERS“I haven’t seen a difference – people probably feel like life is so difficult at the moment they deserve a drink. I’d say lunchtime drinking in the City is as prevalent as it always was, with people driving to secure more business. Perhaps after-work going out is slightly down, but that’s not [...]
Punt on pints with the King of pubcos December 14, 2009 ARGUMENTS over beer are nothing new, but it was still interesting this week when brewers Greene King and Fuller’s started arguing about whose beer is the capital’s best-seller. Traditionally, Fuller’s London Pride has held the top spot, but its rival claimed this week that its Abbot Ale has overtaken it. It turns out that Pride [...]
Hot weather to prove thirsty work and give pubs a boost July 12, 2009 The City has good reason to focus on the pub this week, with numbers from JD Wetherspoon, Enterprise Inns and Mitchells & Butlers all likely to be high on the agenda. The recent hot weather should have provided some welcome business for the hard-hit pubcos. But investors will also look for firms to further defend [...]
Hot weather to prove thirsty work and give pubs a boost July 12, 2009 The City has good reason to focus on the pub this week, with numbers from JD Wetherspoon, Enterprise Inns and Mitchells & Butlers all likely to be high on the agenda. The recent hot weather should have provided some welcome business for the hard-hit pubcos. But investors will also look for firms to further defend [...]
M&B toasts a dining uplift November 26, 2009 PUBS group Mitchells & Butlers yesterday said it was optimistic about Christmas trading as it switched to a food focus to compensate for slower drinks revenue. The group said that it has recently introduced its “winter menu” to take advantage of the rise in consumer confidence, which has sparked people to splash out on good [...]
OUT OF OFFICE January 24, 2010 Van gogh comes to the r.a. Incredibly, this is the first major Van Gogh exhibition in London for over 40 years, and it will shed extra light on the impulses and inspirations of the troubled Dutch painter with the inclusion of 35 of his letters, as well as 65 paintings and 30 drawings. Whether your [...]
Bid battle breaks out for DFS stores January 31, 2010 SEVERAL private equity players are lining up for a bidding war over DFS, the furniture chain owned and chaired by Conservative party donor Lord Kirkham. European rivals Permira, Cinven and Advent International are in the running for the sofa superstore in a development that could steer it away from a mooted stockmarket flotation. The news [...]
Rate revaluation spells tax hikes for businesses January 3, 2010 FIRMS across England and Wales are facing the prospect of dramatic tax hikes in April after changes to Government business rates. County cricket grounds, lifeboat stations, petrol filling stations, football stadia, coaching inns, golf driving ranges and zoos and safari parks will be among the hardest hit. Pubs, shops and restaurants will also see increases, [...]
Admiral works on debt deal with its banker November 16, 2009 ADMIRAL Taverns yesterday confirmed it was working on a financial restructuring which is expected to leave Lloyds Banking Group owning half the pub chain. It was revealed that Lloyds is set to agree a £600m debt-for-equity swap at the tenanted pub company group, in the latest fallout from the banking group’s ill-fated merger last year [...]