All MCA Insight articles in August 2019 – Page 5
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NewsHarrods to open first standalone café
Harrods is to open its first standalone café, in Henley, this October. It will be located in the former Spirited Wines premises at 22 Market Place.
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NewsFryday Fish appoints CBRE in site search
Irish inspired concept Fryday Fish has instructed CBRE Manchester to identify new sites across the North for the fish and chip brand, having secured a debut unit at Xscape Castleford.
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NewsBowl food concept Sow shuts debut
Bowl food concept Sow has closed its debut site after just a few months of trading.
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NewsPeters swaps Zing Zing for Kitopi
Zing Zing managing director Phil Peters has joined delivery rival Kitopi as head of UK expansion, MCA understands.
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InterviewsBleecker: Building up a better burger
Bleecker Burger may have one of the best quality burgers on the market – but is that enough? Founder Zan Kaufman grapples with high expectations, relinquishing responsibility and building a culture that goes beyond a world-class burger.
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Analysis & InsightPeter Martin: Manchester has a new plan
Taking inspiration from other parts of the world, as well as the UK, the city’s imaginative new blueprint for further developing its late-night economy could serve as a model for others, says MCA consulting editor Peter Martin.
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NewsAugust 2019
After a busy few weeks of M&A activity, Dominic Walsh looks at some of the deals going on and examines the role played by activist investors, while Graeme Smith questions whether the current rate of M&A will slow anytime soon.
There are also interviews with Stonegate, EiG and analysis of the potential £3bn deal between the two pub groups. Meanwhile, Steve Gotham visits a new look Bill’s, Georgi Gyton takes a look at Hard Rock International’s new flagship café in Piccadilly Circus, Finn Scott-Delany interviews the boss of Bleecker Burger and MCA’s sister title Food Spark investigates the trend for vending machines serving up fresh salads. -
NewsHumpit secures site 9, lines up three more
Humpit Hummus is opening its first store outside its Northern heartland, in Brighton’s newly developed Hanningtons Estate.
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NewsMcDonald’s escapes slapdown over Big Mac ad
McDonald’s has escaped censure by the ASA after a radio ad for a Grand Big Mac Bacon was cleared by the advertising watchdog. The ad, broadcast on Virgin Radio on 8 March, featured two men talking about their lunch. One said he had a “packed lunch … with a cheeky little choccy bar”. The other said: “That looks tiny, have they made them smaller?” to which the first man replied: “Yeah, they used to be twice as big”. The other said: “You’ve been robbed, mate” before he said he had a “Grand Big Mac Bacon…
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Analysis & InsightAlixPartners: The bar remains open
While it has certainly become more challenging to secure investment in parts of the restaurant market, the past 12 months has seen continued M&A and investment activity across the pub and bar space. The breadth of this activity highlights the current strength of this part of the sector, and this trend does not look like slowing anytime soon, argues AlixPartners’ Graeme Smith.
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NewsJuly sees eating out bounce back
July was a good month for eating out compared to the same period last year, with a rise in footfall, number of visits and the amount of money spent on food and drink. According to the latest MCA Eating Out Panel for July, participation, frequency and average spend in the Eating Out market were all higher in July 2019 than July 2018, when the World Cup was taking place and heatwave was in full effect.
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NewsBruce Pubs withdraws bonds from the NEX Exchange
Scottish operator Bruce Pubs has withdrawn its company’s bonds from trading on the NEX Exchange, only eight months after being admitted.
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NewsMonty’s Deli and Claw opening at Seven Dials Market in September
Monty’s Deli and Claw will open new outlets at Seven Dials Market this September. It will be the third permanent site for Monty’s Deli. Founder Mark Ogus said after the “heartbreak of closing our restaurant in Hoxton, it’s really great to be able to announce we are reuniting with Kerb at Seven Dials Market, right in the heart of the West End.
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NewsFranco Manca lines up Aldgate site
Franco Manca looks set to open a further London restaurant, in Aldgate, MCA understands.
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NewsTea sales shoot up in coffee shops
Coffee shop sales of tea were up 11.1% last year to hit £320m, according to Allegra. The total equates to 3.6m cups of tea, which makes up 4.4% of sales in the UK’s coffee shops. But 61% of industry leaders surveyed said the prospects for tea sales in coffee shops were positive, a drop of 6%. However, Allegra also said that 37% of tea drinkers consider drinking tea outside the home as “poor value for money” and warned operators that “more work is needed to boost consumer estimation of tea served in cafes”.
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NewsPaul UK sees lfls up 3.4% in 2018
Paul UK has seen strong turnover and like-for-likes sales growth in the full-year to 31 December 2018, across its 37-strong estate of shops, boosted by an uptick in online revenue.
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NewsBarburrito reduces losses after ramping up EBITDA
Mexican fast-casual chain Barburrito has reported a 5% increase in turnover for the 53-week period ended 31 March 2019.
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NewsBrewDog considering bond payment in beer
BrewDog founder James Watt has floated the idea of issuing a £10m bond where lenders would be partly paid in beer. As reported by Yahoo Finance, Watt posted on the brewery’s investor forum the suggestion that the bond would feature both financial returns and beverages. “We are considering another £10m ...
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NewsDirty Martini cleans up with sales hike
Dirty Martini has reported a like for like sales uplift of 12% for the 13 weeks to 28 July. The performance of its regional sites was particularly strong, with sales up 19.4% compared to a jump of 6.6% in London.
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NewsDate announced for EiG/Stonegate merger vote
Ei Group (EiG) shareholders are to vote on the proposed merger with Stonegate on 12 September.