All Wagamama articles – Page 2
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NewsOpenings of the week
MCA rounds up this week’s biggest openings stories, including Heartwood, Thunderbird, Rudy’s, Wagamama, Lucky Franks, ScandiKitchden, and more
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Analysis & InsightWagamama and the rise of the finance director-CEO
As the pan-Asian brand’s CEO is replaced with parent company The Restaurant Group’s chief financial officer, Simon Brooke explores the growing trend of finance directors moving into the top job, and asks whether too much focus on cash control can lead to culture and customers being overlooked
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NewsWagamama launches major new brand campaign
‘Food is Life’ builds on the brand’s belief that food is more than fuel with the new campaign celebrating the everyday moments when food brings people together
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Analysis & InsightWagamama drops fresh new summer menu
The new range is designed to cater to a variety of dining needs, and centred on eating out trends including personalisation, freshness, and health
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NewsWagamama signs 15-year lease in Preston
The chain has secured a 4,125 sq ft unit in Preston’s £45m Animate leisure development, with fit-out expected to begin “imminently” and the site expected to open early this summer
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Event NewsHospitality leaders embrace loyalty integration, kiosk innovation and AI
Representatives from over 20 operators convened for MCA’s roundtable at Hostech 2025, with a wide-ranging discussion spanning loyalty integration, back-of-house AI, and customer-centric kiosk strategy
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NewsWagamama CEO Thomas Heier to step down
Wagamama UK CEO Thomas Heier will step down at the end of June after eight years with the brand, with current TRG CFO Mark Chambers set to take over
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Analysis & InsightWagamama set to lead outlet and revenue growth in 2025
The casual dining chain is working towards its 200-site target, supported by brand strength, pricing power, and digital engagement, according to Lumina Intelligence
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InterviewsWagamama surpasses 1m loyalty members as omnichannel grows
CEO Thomas Heier tells MCA the programme is already driving “positive movements to member visit frequency” since launching in 2024, with further functionality and features in the pipeline
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NewsWagamama loyalty scheme integrated with Deliveroo
The delivery service has integrated a restaurant loyalty programme into its app for the first time, launching Wagamama’s Soul Club rewards scheme for UK customers
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NewsWagamama partners with Grind on premium coffee offering
The restaurant group will be offering Grind’s signature blends at all 165 sites and has launched a range of sweet treats to tap into new occasions
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NewsWagamama appoints new chief marketing and commercial officer
Emma Colquhoun, former chief customer officer at Krispy Kreme Emma, will join the restaurant business in April with a remit to drive the Asian brand to its next level of growth in the UK and overseas.
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NewsWagamama issues £330m in senior debt
As part of a refinancing and new capital structure, The Restaurant Group has been split up into three separate divisions. A source said there were no imminent plans to break up the group
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Analysis & InsightVeganuary pivots to a quality-first focus
New plant-based offerings adopt competing trends such as January health kicks and comforting winter indulgence, while serving up both veg-first dishes and plant-based meat substitutes
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Analysis & InsightFresh twists on festive feasting
MCA looks at the restaurant groups breaking the shackles to introduce their own takes on holiday dining, incorporating British traditions with flavours from afar
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NewsWagamama voted UK’s most diverse restaurant workplace
Judges of the Diversity Award were impressed by the makeup of Wagamama’s workforce in terms of general diversity, gender and age, according to a survey from the FT and Statista.
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NewsWagamama turns to tech to support GMs
With less experience within the sector’s talent pool, the brand has developed a real-time data dashboard to give GMs “eyes in the back of the head”, MCA’s Hostech conference heard
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NewsStonegate appoints new chief marketing officer
Kay Bartlett is currently CMO at Wagamama and will officially join Stonegate in February
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NewsOpenings of the week
MCA rounds-up the biggest openings stories from the past week, featuring Pizza Pilgrims, Wagamama, Boojum, Wingstop, Lena Lu and more
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NewsTRG explores £300m refinancing
The Wagamama owner is seeking to reduce its borrowing costs by locking in lower interest rates, Sky News reports