Coronavirus
We reported extensively on the impact of coronavirus across the UK foodservice and hospitality sector, from the initial lockdowns and emergency legislation to the reopening phases, staffing challenges, and long-term recovery. This brings together our coverage of how restaurants, pubs, cafés, bars, and catering firms navigated one of the most disruptive periods in industry history. From furlough and financial support to operational pivots, supplier disruption, and shifting consumer behaviour, our reporting offers critical context for hospitality professionals reflecting on the crisis and preparing for what comes next.
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Mar- 2020 -12 MarchComment
Coronavirus: How to mitigate revenue and footfall declines
This week, UK trade body UKHospitality called on the government to support the hospitality industry as it deals with the ongoing and wide-spread threat of the coronavirus. Latest figures released by the trade body state that eating and drinking out has declined by 7%, while forward bookings across hotels, restaurants,…
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12 MarchPubs and Bars
Pub, bar and restaurant sales fall 3.3%
Like-for-like sales across the pub, bar and restaurant sector fell 3.3% in February against the year prior, according to the latest data from Coffer Peach Business Tracker. Managed pub groups saw collective like-for-like sales fall 4.2%, while restaurant groups were down 1.8%, and bar chains down 2.8%. The weekly results…
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11 MarchBusiness Bites
ROUNDUP: Business rates holiday announced by chancellor Sunak
In his maiden budget, the new chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has announced a £30bn fiscal stimulus package to help combat the impact of coronavirus on the British economy including a one-year total suspension of business rates for small retail, leisure and hospitality businesses. Headline measures include: A £12bn plan to provide…
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11 MarchBusiness
Bank of England cuts interest rates to help combat coronavirus impact
The Bank of England has cut UK interest rates back down to the lowest level in history to help mitigate the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the economy. The governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, announced the 50 basis point (0.5 percentage point) reduction, from 0.75% to…
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10 MarchBusiness Bites
Banks to help us all out with coronavirus fallout
Once again the business pages on all major news outlets are pretty much dominated by the developing story of coronavirus – every sector has some kind of tale to tell. So here is the roundup from today. RBS said it will allow mortgage holidays for people who are forced to stay…
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10 MarchRestaurants
UKHospitality calls for business support to deal with coronavirus threat
Hospitality businesses need “immediate and wide-ranging support” to deal with the threat of the coronavirus, UKHospitality has said. The body, which represents 700 businesses, has written to the prime minister highlighting the impact of COVID-19 “already being felt by businesses around the country”. UKHospitality said hotel occupancy has fallen 15%,…
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9 MarchRestaurants
Confidence at restaurants and pubs hit by coronavirus and new immigration rules
Confidence among the bosses of Britain’s pub and restaurant groups has been “fractured” by the double whammy of coronavirus and the Government’s new immigration policy, according to a new poll by the CGA. A snap survey of close to 100 bosses, from small entrepreneurial operations up to the big corporates,…
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9 MarchPubs and Bars
Pub, bar and restaurant closures reach lowest rate since 2018
The number of restaurants, pubs and bars across Britain fell by only 1.8% in the 12 months to December 2019, the lowest rate of year-on-year decline for almost two years. According to the latest Market Growth Monitor from CGA and AlixPartners, Britain had a total of 116,203 licensed premises at…
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6 MarchBusiness Bites
Flybe’s pensions in doubt; Poorest 20% no better off than before, 1m Virgin customers on unsecured database
lybe’s pension pot for 1,350 current and former workers is at risk, as the fallout from one of the first casualties of the coronavirus business threat manifests in full. Flybe of course was already embattled before the new Covid-19 virus came along, and was the subject of a controversial bailout by…
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6 MarchBusiness Bites
Flybe’s pensions in doubt; Poorest 20% no better off than before, 1m Virgin customers on unsecured database
Flybe’s pension pot for 1,350 current and former workers is at risk, as the fallout from one of the first casualties of the coronavirus business threat manifests in full. Flybe of course was already embattled before the new Covid-19 virus came along, and was the subject of a controversial bailout…
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