Manchester is experiencing “tremendous momentum” in the growth of its F&B offer, with the fastest growing F&B scene in the UK, according to Ted Schama, partner at Shelley Sandzer.
Speaking yesterday (19 March) at the R200 conference hosted by MCA’s sister title Restaurant in Manchester, the property expert pointed out that the city’s F&B offer is growing three times faster than that of London.
“The number of new openings in the [Manchester] city centre is up 22% over five years,” Schama said. “It’s the place for a lot of firsts outside London and is benefiting from curated ownership.”
He highlighted recent and upcoming launches such as Sexy Fish, the Ivy, Chotto Matte, Blacklock, Caravan, and Flat Iron as some of the ‘big names’ endorsing Manchester.
Trafford continues to go from “strength to strength”, with many female-friendly and family-friendly venues as well as high footfall – which is key for non-destinational brands, according to Schama.
Spinningfields is another well established area, but many operators have their eye on emerging locations like St John’s and the Northern Quarter, he added. The prevalence of former industrial sites have led operators to make the most of bigger units.
Schama encouraged delegates to consider such areas due to their lower rents and substantial incentives for F&B operators.
In addition to F&B, he noted competitive socialising is also on the rise in Manchester and nationwide – but cautioned against too-rapid growth.
“From London, brands like Swingers look to go international,” Schama added. “But there are many operators like Lane7 who do well in Manchester.
“Competitive socialising is so hot right now that there are elements of stress starting to show…there are a lot of operators bundled into that space.”
He also shared his views on expansion through franchising, the perception of which has changed in recent years.
“Franchising is not seen as negative anymore, even by luxury operators such as the Nobus of the world.
“It’s a credible route to growth.”
