Georgi Gyton
Georgi joined MCA as deputy editor in 2017 and has written extensively about all areas of the eating and drinking out sector. She has previously held senior roles at People Management and Event at Haymarket Media Group. Prior to that she spent seven years at William Reed, beginning her career at British Baker, before moving across to Meat Trades Journal and GlobalMeatNews.com.
Contact info
- Tel:
- +44 (0)1293 846519
- Email:
- georgi.gyton@mca-insight.com
NewsPret’s Clare Clough promoted to MD UK & Europe
Previously responsible for Pret’s UK shop estate of more than 480 shops, Clough’s new role will see her take on around 100 additional shops across Europe
NewsDeliveroo agrees £2.9bn sale to DoorDash
Under the terms of the acquisition, each Deliveroo shareholder will be entitled to receive 180 pence in cash per share, with the implied enterprise value of Deliveroo approximately £2.4bn.
NewsPapa John’s closes 13 South West restaurants after franchise partnership ended
The pizza delivery business ended the agreement with its regional after a review of the business and said it would be looking to reopen the affected stores as soon as possible
NewsMcDonald’s threatened with sale of shares over trafficked workers
The Church of England is threatening to sell its shares in the fast-food chain unless it engages more with the church’s concerns about modern-day slavery
NewsXP Factory reports bar revenue up 30%
Boom Battle Bar has seen revenues increase by almost a third, helping drive up the experiential leisure business’ total revenue by 17% for the year ended 31 March 2025.
InterviewsYoung’s: ‘We are achieving volume and value growth’
Investment in the pub company’s estate is driving a lot of its like-for-like sales growth, with volumes up and momentum continuing into the new financial year, CEO Simon Dodd tells MCA.
NewsBusiness confidence at highest level since October Budget
Businesses have also stepped up their recruitment and investment plans, for the second month in a row, researchers at the Institute of Directors said in a new survey.
NewsKFC UK achieves +4% sales growth in Q1 2025
Yum! Brands CEO David Gibbs said there had been strong progress on some of the “bold initiatives” the business was putting in place, such as its trial of Kwench drinks within UK KFC stores, with the pilot showing “promising” early results
NewsWhitbread sells 38 branded restaurants as it continues with growth plan
UK F&B sales fell by 11%, in line with expectations, with Whitbread confident of exiting a further circa 60 branded restaurants, as planned, over the next 12 months.
InterviewsPopeyes UK: ‘We see our use of tech as a point of difference’
The fast-growing QSR brand’s chief technology officer David Carey talks to MCA about AI, the development of its app and why the brand wants to “own the customer experience” through building its own tech stack
NewsMarket Taverns names new COO
The 15-strong London pub company has promoted Adrian Laws from operations director to the role of chief operating officer.
NewsMeatailer reports pre-tax profit turnaround
The Scott Collins-led operator of MEATliquor restaurants, recorded pre-tax profit of £118k, for the year to 30 June 2024, up from a loss of £65k the previous year.
InterviewsDong Hyun Kim: ‘A lot of people eat sushi, but the quality has gone down a lot’
The Wasabi founder is keen to avoid going down the well-worn route of high street sushi chains with his new venture Sushinoya – instead focusing on the quality of the fish, the variety on the menu, and the experience for the customer, he tells MCA.
NewsTossed signs first franchise partner as part of 50-site target
The healthy eating brand, which currently operates 13 stores in London, has partnered with Goldbean Limited, led by Badar Zaman, with the first franchise location to open in central Nottingham this summer
InterviewsMaki & Ramen: ‘We’d like to open in every major UK city’
The ten-strong Scottish restaurant company is targeting 30 sites by 2027 and has recently launched a franchise operation to help it grow at a faster rate, founder and CEO Teddy Lee tells MCA.
Analysis & InsightGrowing polarisation in on-premise consumer behaviours
High costs and less disposable income remain the biggest hurdle for the 42% of on-premise consumers who are going out less. In contrast, one in five are going out more, data from CGA by NIQ has found.
NewsNeat closes remaining UK burger restaurants
The plant-based burger chain, backed by F1 racing champion Lewis Hamilton and actor Leonardo DiCaprio, had already closed half of its eight strong UK estate in 2023
NewsF1 champion Alonso buys stake in Sticks ‘n’ Sushi
The Spanish Formula 1 driver is understood to have secured a stake of more than 20% in the Danish-Japanese restaurant group, becoming one of five co-investors, alongside private equity backers McWin.
Analysis & Insight‘We will be a much smaller employer in the future’: The fallout from the Budget
Reduced hours and reined in expansion plans are just some of the ways operators are tackling the significant uplift in labour costs hitting their bottom line from this month. Featuring comments from Giggling Squid, JW Lees, Butcombe Group, and Wells & Co.
NewsPubs choosing to close early to save on costs
Thorley Taverns and WH Pubs are among operators who are calling last orders at 9pm in order to mitigate the impact of the extra labour costs which came into play this month.