All MCA Insight articles in November 2020
View all stories from this issue.
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NewsThunderbird makes suburban debut
Trispan-backed fried chicken concept Thunderbird has launched its third dark kitchen.
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Analysis & InsightHospitality accounts for a third of job losses since February
Hospitality has accounted for a third of UK job losses since the start of the pandemic, which are now at 819,000, according to the Office for National Statistics.
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NewsKhan: ‘Government must realise economic consequences of placing London in tier 3’
London mayor Sadiq Khan has added his voice to criticisms of the government’s decision to place London under tier 3 restrictions, emphasising the devastating impact it will have on the city’s economy.
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Analysis & InsightViability of Scottish hospitality could be “dramatically enhanced” by minor changes to restrictions, study finds
The economic viability of Scotland’s 1,800 hospitality businesses could be dramatically enhanced by relatively minor changes to the country’s restrictions, according to a study by BiGGAR Economics.
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NewsBoxpark to reduce rent for traders operating in tier 3
Boxpark will reduce rent for its food traders that wish to stay open under London’s tier 3 restrictions from tomorrow, and will waive rent for tenants who remain closed.
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Analysis & InsightBrandwatch: Burger King @ Just Eat
Unlike the rest of us, Just Eat has had a pretty good year. From that fateful day in March, as the nation was informed that they “must stay home” in a then unprecedented (three-week) lockdown, eating in became the new eating out. Just Eat saw a 33% jump in orders as a result of the first lockdown – with breakfast and lunch orders rising by 50% and 80% respectively – and the upward trend has since continued. However, whilst the crisis may have escalated the company’s rapid growth, it was by no means the catalyst.
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NewsTier 3 confirmed for London
Thousands of pubs, bars and restaurants in London will be forced to close as the capital is set to move into tier 3 imminently, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has confirmed.
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NewsNeat Burger opens in Soho
Neat Burger, the plant-based burger chain, has opened its third dine-in outlet, on 33 Old Compton Street, Soho.
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Analysis & InsightWet-led sector sees 90% sales slump in lockdown
Pub and bar groups saw a staggering 90% drop in sales last month as lockdown in England and ongoing restrictions in Scotland and Wales took their toll, the Coffer Peach Business Tracker has revealed. According to the tracker, bar groups were the worst affected with sales down 90.2% on November last year, closely followed by drink-led managed pubs (down 88.8%). Food-led operations faired slightly better, with some still able to rely on delivery revenue, though total sales in group-owned restaurants still fell by 65.9% year-on-year, and food-led pubs were down 85%.
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NewsDeltic files for administration
Nightclub operator Deltic has filed a notice to appoint administrators. The group, which owns late-night brands including Pryzm and Bar and Beyond, announced its intention to sell in October, but has been as yet unable to secure a buyer. Over the last few weeks, private equity firms Greybull Capital and Aurelius emerged as interested parties in the group, but Scandinavia bar operator Rekom Group has since come to the fore as the preferred bidder to buy Deltic through a pre-pack administration. It’s understood that any deal could see the permanent closure of some of its 52 sites.
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NewsHospitality restrictions take toll on GDP growth
Hospitality restrictions have contributed significantly to the dip in the UK’s economic growth and will likely continue to do so unless measures are rethought, UK Hospitality has warned. New figures from the Office for National Statistics show that GDP grew by just 0.4% in October, down from 1.1% in September and the weakest its been since the economy started its recovery from the pandemic-induced recession earlier this year. The services sector – which represents four-fifths of economic output – grew by just 0.2% as a result of increased restrictions, declining by 0.37% month-on-month.
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NewsParliamentary group formed to support late-night businesses
A group of cross-party MPs and peers have formed an All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the night-time economy.
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NewsRamsay rolls out ‘street’ restaurant concepts
Gordon Ramsay has announced plans to expand his ‘street concept’ restaurant portfolio across London, with three openings set before the end of the year.
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NewsJust Eat to create 1,000 jobs through new agency worker model
Just Eat has launched a new agency worker model for couriers, which will switch contracts to hourly pay and could create more than 1,000 jobs by March, the company has said.
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NewsEviction moratorium extended
The eviction moratorium on commercial property tenants has been extended until the end of March 2021.
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InterviewsShepherd Neame CEO Jonathan Neame: ‘Hancock is a latter-day Champagne Charlie’
The government should expect a “huge political backlash” on the other side of the pandemic for its “disproportionate” and “arbitrary” restrictions on the pub sector, Shepherd Neame CEO Jonathan Neame has said.
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InterviewsSwingers co-founder Matt Grech-Smith: ‘Our long-term plans remain the same’
Swingers, the London-based competitive socialising concept, will continue to push on with its international expansion plans despite the ongoing uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic, Matt Grech-Smith, co-founder of parent operator the Institute of Competitive Socialising has said.
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Analysis & InsightHospitality jobs job losses hit 650,000
Jobs in the hospitality sector have dropped by 26% year-on-year, with November seeing another huge wave of job losses, according to Fourth.
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NewsNew hospitality restrictions hit footfall in Wales
New rules restricting the sale of alcohol in Welsh hospitality businesses has had an immediate and significant impact on footfall, according to the latest data from Wireless Social.
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NewsStonegate offers 90% rent credit for tier 3 tenants
Stonegate Pub Company has announced additional support for businesses in its leased and tenanted division, Ei Publican Partnerships, in response to the government’s tier system.