All MCA Insight articles in April 2025 – Page 9
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NewsPortobello Starboard appoints ex-M&B CEO as NED
Adam Fowle joins as the Zetland Capital-backed pub group exits a strategic review and looks to accelerate its expansion
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NewsStarbucks UK posts £35m loss
The coffee company blamed a consumer boycott campaign, cost of living pressures and increased competition in the UK for a slump in sales
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NewsWagamama loyalty scheme integrated with Deliveroo
The delivery service has integrated a restaurant loyalty programme into its app for the first time, launching Wagamama’s Soul Club rewards scheme for UK customers
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NewsGong Cha announces record sales
The bubble tea brand achieved sales of $600m in the 52 weeks to 31 December 2024, with more than 240 new sites having opened last year. It recently signed a new franchise agreement to open an initial 225-plus UK stores.
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NewsBlack Sheep Coffee continuing fast paced Scottish expansion
The West of Scotland franchise stores are being opened by Suhail Rehman and Tariq Din, as part of an agreement to open a double-digit number of sites over the next five years.
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NewsSimon Emeny: NICs rise a ‘hammer blow’ to sector
The Fuller’s chief executive said he is frustrated by the “lack of joined-up thinking” by the government, and had been forced to review prices in the past week in response to rising business costs
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NewsCamerons can refocus on pub operations following debt reduction
The brewer and pub operator said its 45 managed house pubs traded well in 2024, contributing to a “significant improvement” in EBITDA for the year to 5 January 2025, from £3.9m to £4.6m.
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Weekend PressEllen Chew: I have 100 bottles of Japanese whisky. Some are worth £12,000
The restaurateur has been on a $20,000 Antarctic cruise, but only really felt wealthy when she could buy chocolate without looking at the price, she tells The Sunday Times
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Weekend PressAlixPartners drafts in Goldman Sachs to run sale of stake
Deal is latest in wave involving professional services firms, The Sunday Times reports
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Weekend PressIs gin less popular? Why the UK’s thirst is drying up
In the late 2000s a change to a 180-year-old law led to a craft gin revolution. We sank bottle after bottle of the stuff in lockdown. But have we fallen out love with our favourite tipple, asks Harry Wallop
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Weekend PressStarbucks slows India expansion as consumers tighten belts
Footfall drops as economy weakens but chain still hopes to reach 1,000-store goal, the FT reports
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Weekend PressInside the secret world of covert restaurant bookings where customers are ranked to get a table
From private WhatsApp lines to curtained-off tables and free meals on the house, The Independent investigates how the hottest restaurants are bending over backwards for some people while leaving others out in the cold
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Weekend Press‘We will see closures’: The industries hit hardest by national insurance hike
People working in retail, hospitality and small businesses have told Sky News of the tangible effects the increase will have on them.
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Weekend PressWhy the restaurant world hates beer drinkers
I’ve always thought working in hospitality is like getting a free MBA – but one rooted in the real world rather than theory, Rory Sutherland writes in The Spectator
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NewsYard Sale Pizza secures investment from Piper
The London neighbourhood pizza delivery brand plans to supercharge expansion in London and new cities across the UK, with a goal of reaching 40 shops over the next five years, MCA can reveal
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EventsIntroducing The Takeaway podcast, with Amol Rajan
Award-winning journalist Amol Rajan, host of Radio 4 Today and University Challenge, delivers a thought-provoking rallying cry to the sector at the MCA Hospitality Awards, in the first episode of a new podcast series
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NewsBoss Pizza announces 50-site target
The independent chain plans to open 20 sites in the next 18 months and 50 within three years, while looking for an international franchise partner
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NewsBlack Tap to open four UK sites in 2025
The US burger brand will open its UK flagship in London’s Soho this month, with plans to launch three additional UK sites before the end of the year
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NewsDoner Shack secures new multi-site franchisee in Scotland
The UK-born Berlin-inspired kebab franchise is to expand in its hometown of Glasgow following the agreement of a new three-site franchise deal.
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NewsTariffs hit £162m British beer exports
President Donald Trump’s 25% aluminium tariffs, which affect canned beer, are set to impact Britain’s brewing sector, which exports £126m of beer across the Atlantic