All MCA Insight articles in July 2023
View all stories from this issue.
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ArticleSEPTEMBER 2023
MCA’s September edition features in-depth analysis and commentary on the eating and drinking out sector. This month, we explore TDR Capital’s £50m investment in Popeyes, the ongoing scandal around employee claims against McDonald’s, and the hype around AI and its implications for hospitality businesses. The edition includes interviews with Deliveroo about keeping the focus on its existing estate; Toridoll about taking Franco Manca out to the world; and Big Table Group on unlocking cost synergies across its portfolio. Industry commentators Peter Martin, Dominic Walsh, and David Read share their views on sector issues, including spreadsheet buying plus the resurgence and recovery of pubs this summer and their relationship with the government.
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NewsBill’s delivers highest ever lfl sales
The group has reported half-year results for the six months ended 30 June, delivering its highest ever like-for-like sales of £45.3m at current trading sites
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NewsJeremy King to reopen legendary Le Caprice restaurant
The veteran restaurateur collected the keys to the property behind the Ritz hotel in St James’s and plans to bring it back to life in the new year
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NewsWhy your burger may not always look like the advert
In response to accusations of misleading customers, Burger King has said all the products featured in its advertising materials are “the same burgers served to guests all across the UK”
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InterviewsPret ramps up prices as gross profits climb 83%
The price of an egg mayo sandwich is up 72% since 2020, compared to CPI inflation of 20% over the same period
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NewsJamie Oliver may open a restaurant within his Essex home
The celebrity chef has said that there are parts of his home Spains Hall that he wants to develop, with plans for a restaurant and bakery
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NewsPragmatic, modern approach needed towards drugs
Government policy on drugs needs to be updated as it is ill-suited to contemporary challenges, the Night Time Industries Association argues
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NewsGordon Ramsay gets on board with delivery
The chef’s Street Pizza, Street Burger, Pizza East, and Bread Street Kitchen have joined Uber Eats
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NewsPatisserie Valerie begins reopening sites
The Causeway Capital-backed group has returned to expansion after closing a number of loss-making sites last year as part of a restructure to shore up its financial position
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NewsOpenings of the week
MCA rounds up this week’s biggest openings stories, including Wingstop, Bagel Factory, Pieminister, Bone Daddies and more
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NewsDoner Shack roll out new brand positioning
The Berlin-inspired street-food franchise concept will roll out its brand repositioning across all five UK stores, with the aim to appeal to a younger demographic
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NewsPost-Brexit import checks delay ‘hugely frustrating’
The delay has been described as frustrating for food producers and businesses, with new border controls delayed until January 2024
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InterviewsHeart with Smart: ‘Our business is robust’
CEO Jens Hofma hit back at reports suggesting an uncertain future at the Pizza Hut Restaurants operator, telling MCA trading is “improving rapidly”
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OpinionPeter Martin: Pubs have changed, someone tell the Government
Peter Martin examines Rishi Sunak’s blundering PR spin on alcohol duty, announcements which were widely received as a “hammer blow” to the sector
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NewsHeart with Smart confident of agreeing refinancing
The Pizza Hut Restaurants operator has agreed a temporary covenant structure while it negotiates with its lenders
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NewsDishoom expects full profit recovery in 2023
The company said although profitability was not at pre-pandemic levels in 2022, there was an improvement in underlying profit margins vs FY21
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NewsCraft beer has not lost its froth, says new owner of three troubled breweries
Breal Capital tells The Times that it expects craft beer consumption to continue to grow with the opportunity for strong brands to thrive
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NewsSoaring costs put farmers on the front line of a food crisis
Britain’s agricultural sector is being put under unprecedented pressures, The Times reports
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NewsPizza Hut Restaurants' auditors fire warning shot over UK franchise's future
PwC have warned of “material uncertainty” which has bought into question the future of the British franchise of the US pizza restaurant chain, The Telegraph reports
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NewsHeineken sells off Russian beer business for €1
The Dutch brewer said it will take a loss of €300m on the division, the BBC reports