Public House

Supermarkets sweep away community pubs, claims Camra

20-Nov-2012 By Peter Ruddick

The Campaign for Real Ale is calling on the Government to introduce changes to planning laws in order to prevent pubs from being sold to supermarket chains and property developers; a problem the organisation says is leading to one pub a week becoming...

The Lucky Onion group adds third food-led pub to portfolio ahead of further expansion

08-Nov-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Cotswolds-based hospitality group The Lucky Onion has this week opened The Chequers, a recently acquired food-led pub in Oxfordshire, ahead of further planned expansion for the company next year.

Cozy Pubs expands hunt for new sites beyond Essex

25-Oct-2012

Cozy Pub Company has announced it achieved record sales growth in the third quarter of the year and revealed it is looking for new sites sites in locations beyond its Essex base to achieve its expansion plans.

People on the Move in Hospitality: October 2012

24-Oct-2012 By Luke Nicholls

In our exclusive People on the Move in Hospitality gallery, BigHospitality rounds up some of the latest movers and shakers in the industry. The past month has seen a number of new appointments at hotels, restaurants, pubs and institutions including One...

Punch Taverns reveals restructuring talks as profits drop

24-Oct-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Punch Taverns has announced a drop in its pre-tax profits for the last year and revealed it has begun discussions about possible restructuring options for the business.

Beer tax escalator to be debated and voted on by MPs on 1 November

24-Oct-2012 By Peter Ruddick

The controversial beer tax escalator is to receive a Parliamentary debate on 1 November after a House of Commons committee agreed to let MPs discuss and vote on a motion calling for a review of the policy.

BBPA Annual Dinner & Industry Awards

18-Oct-2012 By Luke Nicholls

The winners of the inaugural British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) industry awards were announced at the organisation’s Annual Dinner which took place at the London Marriott Grosvenor Square hotel last night.

Last-minute Christmas planning: Orchid shares secrets to festive success

18-Oct-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Despite price-sensitive diners booking Christmas dinners and events later than ever, pub and bar operator Orchid has already seen bookings up 10 per cent on last year. The group has given us some timely top tips to help with that last-minute festive planning.

September washout hits sales growth for Britain's top restaurants and pubs

16-Oct-2012 By Peter Ruddick

September's rain and bad weather held back sales growth at Britain’s leading pub and restaurant groups with like-for-like sales up just 0.7 per cent, according to the latest Coffer Peach Business Tracker.

Four pubs sold in a fortnight, defying national trends

15-Oct-2012 By Luke Nicholls

A clutch of pubs across the South West have been sold in the space of just two weeks, defying gloomy national pub sale forecasts and giving sector specialists Colliers International its busiest month since 2008.

Spirit Pub Company opens 100th John Barras pub, targets 200 mark

10-Oct-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Spirit Pub Company has opened its 100th site under the growing neighbourhood brand John Barras and has committed to a target of further doubling the estate.

Marston's hails pub-restaurant impact, plans to open 20-25 new sites

04-Oct-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Marston's has revealed its move into opening pub restaurants is paying significant dividends by increasing the company's exposure to the casual dining market while the operator has committed to opening 20-25 new pubs in the 2013 financial year.

Orchid ups food focus as it reports fall in earnings

01-Oct-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Pub and bar operator Orchid Group has reported a 5.4 per cent drop in EBITDAR in 2011, although turnover grew by 3.7 per cent to £179.6m as the company announced a £20m programme which will see all of its wed-led pubs become food-led. 

Strong beer, food and room sales help Shepherd Neame's profits rise nearly 40%

26-Sep-2012 By Emma Eversham

Strong performances across the areas of beer, food and accommodation at Shepherd Neame has led to the brewer, pub and hotel operator experiencing a pre-tax profit rise of almost 40 per cent to £9.1m.  

Brakspear to partner with Claude Bosi following the acquisition of Fulham's The Malt House pub

24-Sep-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Brakspear has made its sixth purchase since returning to the acquisition trail earlier this year by buying The Malt House pub in Fulham from Spirit Pub Company which will now be let to Jolly Fine Restaurants - the company owned by Michelin-starred chef...

Cheshire publican targets female pub-goers with food-led venue The Black Swan

21-Sep-2012 By Peter Ruddick

The Black Swan pub in Cheshire has re-opened after a six-month, £500k refurb with the new owner targeting female pub-goers with the food-led venue which she hopes will be the first of a number of sites.

Pub market stabilising with trading confidence on the up

14-Sep-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Trading performance within the public house sector appears to be stabilising, with a survey of pub investors and owners revealing that future expectations for trading performance in the short and medium term are strongly positive.

Camra’s Good Beer Guide 2013 hails Britain's brewery boom

13-Sep-2012 By Luke Nicholls

The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) is today raising a glass to the 40th anniversary of its flagship publication the Good Beer Guide which reports that there are now just over 1,000 breweries operational across the UK - the highest number for over 70 years.

Simon Rogan set to open pub in same Cumbrian village as L'Enclume and Rogan & Company

07-Sep-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Simon Rogan has revealed he is to take over the running of his local pub - The Pig & Whistle in Cartmel - which is located within walking distance of his flagship restaurant L'Enclume and sister venue Rogan & Company.

Hospitality industry veteran launches second Heritage Inns venue - Baroque Café Bar & Grill

05-Sep-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Andrew Marler, the businessman behind the refurb and launch of the Shepherd's Bush Empire and several pub businesses, has opened Baroque Café Bar & Grill; the second venue in his Hertfordshire-based Heritage Inns company.

Weathering the storm: Rain has mixed impact on UK pub sector

29-Aug-2012 By Peter Ruddick

While a number of operators bemoan bad weather and the UK hospitality industry begins to assess the impact of yet another wet British Bank Holiday weekend, The Orchid Group has revealed the recent rain is actually helping to boost sales.

St Austell buys five south west pubs from Enterprise Inns

24-Aug-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Cornwall-based brewer and pub operator St Austell Brewery has announced it has completed a deal to buy five south west pubs from Enterprise Inns.

Adnams slams Government for denying hospitality jobs to younger generation

22-Aug-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Government policies such as the alcohol duty escalator and proposed beer bottle tax stamps are contributing to youth unemployment by indirectly denying young people jobs in the hospitality industry, brewer and pubco Adnams says.

Marco Pierre White pub sold to Cirrus Inns

07-Aug-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Marco Pierre White’s pub The Yew Tree in Highclere, near Newbury, has been sold to Cirrus Inns, the investment vehicle co-founded by Alex Langsland Pearse and former Gordon Ramsay Holdings executive chef Mark Askew.

Punch Taverns joins Jacques Borel's VAT Club

06-Aug-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Punch Taverns, the UK’s second largest operator of tenanted pubs, has become the latest hospitality business to join Jacques Borel’s VAT Club which seeks to reduce VAT to five per cent as a way of stimulating job creation.

Novus Leisure sold to new investors for £100m

27-Jul-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Bar and nightclub operator Novus Leisure has been sold to new investors LGV Capital and Hutton Collins for £100m in a deal that will see the new owners supporting the strategy to double its central London portfolio over the next three years.

Brownsword Hotels to reposition Washbourne Court hotel as pub with rooms

26-Jul-2012 By Emma Eversham

Brownsword Hotels is to reposition Washbourne Court in Gloucestershire, one of the former Von Essen country house hotels it bought out of administration last year, as a pub with rooms.

Heavy rain, Diamond Jubilee and Euro 2012 bring ‘mixed fortunes’ for eating out sector

18-Jul-2012 By Luke Nicholls

UK restaurants and pubs saw like-for-like sales edge up 1.3 per cent last month, but a combination of the unusually cold and wet weather, Euro 2012 and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee brought contrasting prosperities for the sector.

Smoking Ban: Five years on BBPA rejects calls for smoking rooms, what next for campaigners?

11-Jul-2012 By Peter Ruddick

To mark five years since the implementation of the ban on smoking in pubs and bars in England, BigHospitality has produced a podcast report investigating the current situation and possible future options for campaigners and publicans still hoping to change...

Brakspear buys two Enterprise Inns pubs, declares intention to expand further

09-Jul-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Brakspear pubs has purchased two venues from Enterprise Inns as chief executive Tom Davies declares the tenanted pub operator will remain on the acquisition trail and intends to expand further this year.

Wear Inns buys nine TCG pubs taking portfolio to 24

04-Jul-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Wear Inns, the Northern community pub operator, has announced it has completed the acquisition of nine pubs in the North East and Yorkshire from TCG as a result of private investment backing secured earlier this year.

Amber Taverns hails wet-led community pubs as sales rise

07-Jun-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Amber Taverns, the North West based pub operator which specialises in community pubs, has reported a rise in like-for-like sales across its estate claiming the rise shows wet-led pubs can be good businesses for hospitality operators.

Hospitality set to benefit from Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

31-May-2012 By Emma Eversham

The UK’s hospitality industry is set to benefit from the double bank holiday weekend afforded by the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee as the majority of Brits plan to remain on home soil to celebrate. 

Wharfebank Brewery takes on second pub saving Yorkshire local from closure

30-May-2012 By Emma Eversham

Independent Yorkshire-based brewery Wharfebank has taken over its second pub after its managing director Martin Kellaway refused to watch another community pub disappear. 

Food and family focus drives pub sales up for Marston's

17-May-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Marston's has reported strong half year sales with an increased focus on food, families and female customers helping to drive pre-tax profits up by nearly 15 per cent.

Hall & Woodhouse grows pub estate with four acquisitions

16-May-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Dorset-based brewer and pub operator Hall & Woodhouse has revealed it has acquired four new sites to add to its pub portfolio including two new builds and an established operation in Bristol.

Enterprise Inns slows pub disposal as profits drop

15-May-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Enterprise Inns has reported a drop in profits but revealed it was slowing its pub disposal programme and was looking to refinance after cutting its levels of debt.

UK pubs benefit from more than £40m in international visitor spend

14-May-2012 By Peter Ruddick

UK pubs are estimated to have benefited from the 13.8m international visitors who visited a pub in 2011 to the tune of more than £40m, according to new figures released by the national tourism agency VisitBritain.

Cozy Pubs continues Essex expansion

11-May-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Cozy Pubs has increased its foothold in rural Essex with the acquisition of The Saracens Head Hotel in the market town of Great Dunmow.

Hospitality Action Week 2012: How to get involved

08-May-2012 By Luke Nicholls

The entire UK hospitality industry, from five-star hotels and country pubs to catering colleges, restaurants and industry workers, is uniting to take part in Hospitality Action Week from 14-20 May. 

Failing pub specialists add sixth pub to portfolio

02-May-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Quality Inns, the pub brand launched by the husband and wife team of Easton and Alison Hogben, has added The Floating Bridge in Dartmouth to its list of venues. 

Chancellor ‘totally wrong to raise beer tax’, says BBPA

20-Apr-2012 By Luke Nicholls

The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) has slammed Chancellor George Osborne and the Government for their decision to raise beer tax by a further five per cent in the March Budget.

Spirit announces rise in profits as business transformation continues

19-Apr-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Spirit Pub Company has announced it is continuing to transform the business as pre-tax profits for the 28 weeks to 3 March 2012 rose 7 per cent to £20m driven by a strategy for the managed site portion of the business.

Geronimo Inns returns to roots with Chelsea Ram relaunch

16-Apr-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Rupert and Jo Clevely, the duo behind London-based, food-led pub operator Geronimo Inns, have reclaimed the Group’s first pub and are set to relaunch it this month, 17 years on from its initial opening.

Punch Taverns 'on track' despite profits drop

12-Apr-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Punch Taverns has said it remains 'on track' to meet its expectations for the year despite a drop in first half pre-tax profits from £41m last year to £33m in the 28 weeks to 3 March 2012.

Camra launches first Community Pubs Month, names Local Pubs of the Year

03-Apr-2012 By Peter Ruddick

The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) has launched its first ever Community Pubs Month by releasing new statistics on the impact of the pub on the community and revealing the full list of Local Pubs of the Year winners now competing for the national title.

Pub licensees should be turning a profit sooner, according to pub consultant and former M&B operations director

15-Mar-2012 By Peter Ruddick

Pub licensees should not be content to see their pubs turning a profit in six months but aim to make money sooner, according to Alastair Scott, pub consultant and founder of Malvern Inns and former operations director at Mitchells & Butlers (M&B).

Trade remains tough for restaurants and pubs, February sales figures show

13-Mar-2012 By Emma Eversham

Trade remains tough for many chain restaurants and pubs across the UK according to the latest figures from the Coffer Peach Business Tracker. 

Beer tax hikes threaten jobs of 300,000 young people, says BBPA

23-Feb-2012 By Luke Nicholls

A new report commissioned by the British Beer& Pub Association (BBPA) shows that 300,000 young people are directly employed in the beer and pub industry, fuelling concerns that plans for huge beer tax hikes in next month’s budget will put more young...

Les Routiers reveals Restaurant, Hotel and Pub of the Year winners

21-Feb-2012 By Luke Nicholls

Ten hotels, restaurants, pubs and inns have been awarded by guide Les Routiers UK for demonstrating ‘exceptional service, hospitality and quality of food’ throughout the year.