All MCA Insight articles in March 2026
View all stories from this issue.
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Analysis & InsightWhat went wrong at Domino’s, the chain that declared ‘peak pizza’?
With no full-time boss, shares at a 12-year low, and soaring costs, times are tough for the fast-food giant — but some experts say the worst is over
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Analysis & InsightChicken welfare was finally improving. Why is it going backwards?
Chains such as Nando’s are ditching pledges to stop using ‘Frankenchickens’ that barely live before slaughter. Are they right to claim it’s the green thing to do?
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News‘A temple of food’: London’s grande dame Simpson’s in the Strand rises again
As the storied London dining room reopens on its bicentenary, restaurateur Jeremy King honours its heritage while restoring a faded icon
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NewsHarrods faces legal action over £1-a-head dining charge not going to staff
Case brought by 29 workers and backed by UVW union seen as test case that could lead to changes at other restaurants
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Analysis & InsightLabour’s war on pubs has made the £10 pint a reality
The average price of a beer is on course to hit £10 within a decade, according to an analysis by The Telegraph
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NewsGreggs to reveal trading amid pressure from cost of living and weight loss drugs
On Tuesday, Greggs is expected to reveal pre-tax profits of around £173 million for the year to December 27, representing a 9% drop, The Standard reports
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NewsBrewdog expected to announce sale early next week
Scottish craft beer giant Brewdog expects to announce the sale of its business next week, the chief executive has said in an email to staff
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NewsLondon-listed drinks group C&C in talks about BrewDog rescue bid
C&C Group, which has a market valuation of just over £430m, is among the parties in serious negotiations with advisers, Sky News reports
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NewsBrewDog deal expected today
CEO James Taylor told staff bars would remain shut today in anticipation of the deal completing, with co-founder James Watt reportedly now ruled out
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NewsLicensed Trade Charity marks record year
The charity supported approximately 45,000 people across 2025, a like-for-like uplift of 12.5%
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NewsCaffè Nero completes acquisition of Compass Coffee
An American division of Nero acquired the 15-strong Washington D.C. based business and roastery after it filed for bankruptcy
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NewsInsomnia Cookies MD steps down
Ben Lacey has left to join Padel Project as CEO, which has plans to build 1,000 courts in the UK
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NewsPopeyes announces entry into Ireland
The team behind Popeyes UK have secured a master franchise development deal, with an initial site opening in Blanchardstown, Dublin, and a further pipeline of additional restaurants across the country already secured, including an additional Dublin ‘megastore’
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NewsTilray Brands acquires BrewDog in £33m deal
The deal sees the consumer products company take on the global brand and related intellectual property, as well as the UK brewing operations and 11 bars across the British Isles
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InterviewsAmorino: ‘100 sites is a conservative number’
The 42-strong gelato chain is expanding with 10-15 new openings per year – but UK managing director Max Aceto tells MCA there’s much more potential for the future
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NewsBlack Sheep Coffee promotes Isobel Childs to chief growth officer
Childs will lead global expansion across franchising and property after working with the coffee shop business for nearly eight years, most recently as EMEA growth director and chief of staff
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NewsAdmiral: ‘We want to be at the forefront of M&A’
The pub group remains ambitious to grow its estate of community wet-led pubs, despite the cost headwinds and uncertainties in the market, CEO Chris Jowsey tells MCA.
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NewsGreggs reports profit slide despite rising sales
Total sales at the food to go retailer were up 6.8% during the 52 weeks ended 27 December 2025, but it reported a drop in statutory profit before tax of 17.9%, to £167.4m for 2025 versus the previous year as a result of a “tough environment” for the sector
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NewsChancellor set to backtrack on minimum wage pledge
The government had been planning to scrap the youth rate but pressure from business groups and warnings from the OBR on unemployment rates look set to see these plans watered down.
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NewsKaren Bosher takes up NED role at Luminary Bakery
The social enterprise bakery’s work supporting women to build skills, confidence and financial independence “is both commercially credible and deeply human”, Bosher said.