24/12/2024 09:46:00
Stonegate Group has revealed it has invested over £100m throughout the last year, reports Pub & Bar. With investment across pub and bar estates being a crucial strategy for operators large and small, the UK's biggest pub company has revealed it has invested over £100m through 2024. From major refurbishments to new concept launches, Stonegate Group says the money has been used to enhance its estate of 4,500 pubs, bars and venues. As part of its overall investment activity, the company spent more than £17m on its Pub Partners portfolio, while there have also been large refurbishments in its managed estate.
The UK franchise of Wingstop has been sold to US investment firm Sixth Street as it looks to continue its expansion, advises The Caterer. Lemon Pepper Holdings, the master franchisee for the chicken wing chain in the UK and Ireland, is understood to have sold the business for more than £400m originally reported. Wingstop made its UK debut in London in 2018 and has grown to 57 sites and created over 2,500 jobs. Wingstop is aiming to reach 200 restaurants within the next five years with revenue expected to exceed £150m.
St Austell Brewery has announced a multi-million-pound investment at one of St Ives' most iconic venues, The Pedn Olva. The pub with rooms will undergo a complete transformation, with its public areas, reception space, restaurant, pub and 26 bedrooms given an overhaul. The Pedn Olva has been part of St Austell Brewery's managed estate - which includes 46 pubs and hotels across the South West - for the past 25 years. The Pedn Olva is the fifth managed pub in St Austell Brewery's portfolio to undergo a multi-million-pound capital expenditure refurbishment in the last three years, says Boutique Hotelier.
Stormy weather restricted On Premise drinks sales in the first fortnight of December -- leaving suppliers and venues hoping for a late surge in the last few days before Christmas. CGA by NIQ's Daily Drinks Tracker shows average sales in managed venues in the seven days to Saturday 7 December were 4% below the same week in 2023. The following week, to Saturday 14 December, saw the year-on-year gap widen to 6%. Footfall was hit hard in the middle of the two-week period by Storm Darragh, with sales down by 10% on the key trading date of Saturday 7 December, reports Caterer Licensee Hotelier.
Hotels and serviced apartments in Liverpool could charge overnight guests £2 a night as soon as June 2025 as part of a tourist levy says Hotel Owner. Hotels and serviced apartments operating in the city are being asked to vote on a new City Visitor Charge as part of the city's Accommodation BID. The proposal would see the charge, which would be administered by hotels, going directly into the visitor economy and helping to support its growth and development.
Upham Inns has posted a boost in revenue and gross profit in its results for the financial year ended 31 March 2024, citing a "noticeable improvement" during the second half of the period, reports the Morning Advertiser. The operator of 14 pubs across the south of England reported revenue had grown by 4.5% from £18.4m last year to £19.3m. Gross profit grew from £14.2m to £15m but it made a loss before tax of £311k versus a profit in 2022-23 of £71k.
Soho House shares surge on offer to take it private, reports the FT.