All MCA Insight articles in March 2024
View all stories from this issue.
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Analysis & InsightPub sector experiences varied performance
JP Morgan has highlighted a cautious yet optimistic outlook for the sector, in an update on its estimates for Young’s and Mitchells & Butlers
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Analysis & InsightIs late night dead?
As Revolution Bars Group and Rekom UK struggle with a decline in night-time revelling among young people, MCA’s new writer Simon Brooke takes a look at whether the tried and tested evening bar format is past its sell-by date, and explores how operators are having to innovate and fight harder than ever for a share of consumers’ wallets
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NewsNPD taps into global flavour trends
A flurry of seasonal menu refreshes see Subway lean on a growing trend for smokehouse concepts, Loungers inspired by Brixton’s finest Caribbean restaurants, while Pret introduces Thai-style salads and wraps
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NewsRockfish partners with Westmorland Family
The seafood specialist is launching a digital fish counter at the motorway service operator’s Gloucester location
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NewsLoungers updates senior team
Justin Carter has taken on the new role of group managing director, while Kate Eastwood has joined as Lounge managing director from Fuller’s
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NewsCooks Coffee appoints Aiden Keegan as CEO
Keegan has worked with the Esquires owner since 2004, most recently as MD for the Esquires UK business
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NewsEaster bookings up 40%
Across the four-day period, Easter Sunday remains the most popular date to book, with bookings up by nearly 50% on 2023, according to Zonal
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NewsDouble swoop for Heartwood Inns at Publican Awards
The operator impressed judges in both the Best Managed Pub Company and Best Pub Operations Team categories, with other winners including Liberation Group and Loungers’ Alex Reilley
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NewsRedCat Pub Company to exit 24 sites
The Rooney Anand-led pub investment vehicle said it has undertaken a strategic review in context of sector-wide challenges, in addition to appointing a new executive team
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NewsButcombe Pubs & Inns reports record sales in March
The Liberation Group-owned business attributed strong sales to a bumper Mother’s Day weekend and the Cheltenham Festival
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InterviewsWestmorland Family: Another way of doing motorway services
CEO Nabil Subuh explores why there is space in the market for a roadside brand committed to providing seasonal, locally sourced food, and giving back to communities
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Analysis & InsightDeliveroo contributes £1.9bn to UK economy
Research by Capital Economics, commissioned by Deliveroo, reports gross transaction value of just over £4bn in the UK and Ireland placed through the app in 2023
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NewsOpenings of the week
MCA rounds up the week’s biggest openings stories, including Wingstop UK, Urban Pubs & Bars, Loungers and more
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NewsStarbucks to open further 100 UK stores
The coffee giant reported 22% year-on-year sales growth in the UK to £547.7m, with plans to grow its current estate of 340 drive-thrus
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NewsTom Sugarman swaps Wasabi for itsu
The former Wasabi managing director has left the sushi and bento brand for itsu, where he has joined as hospitality & development director
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NewsGreene King opens first Nest pub
The Palmer Tavern, located on Wokingham Road in Reading has opened after a £360,000 investment by the pub company
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NewsShake Shack opens first train station site
The burger chain is set to open in St Pancras International, home to the Eurostar in early summer 2024
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NewsXP Factory sees opportunity to ‘make hay in underpenetrated market’
CEO Richard Harpham said the experiential operator opened so many sites so quickly in 2022, “we didn’t get everything right”, but added its brands Boom Battle Bar and Escape Hunt remain “highly resilient” to consumer headwinds
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NewsPapa John’s confirms 43 closure locations
Around a tenth of the pizza company’s 450 UK locations are described as “low-performing” or “underperforming” and so no longer financially viable
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Analysis & InsightMore than 13,000 night time businesses lost since 2020, new report finds
The Night Time Economy tracker from the Night Time Industries Association and CGA found 35% of independent nightclub businesses have shuttered since March 2020