Covid-19
Our COVID-19 coverage captures the full impact of the pandemic on the UK’s foodservice and hospitality sector, from lockdown trading restrictions and government support schemes to recovery planning, operational adaptations, and long-term business implications. This includes essential reporting for restaurant operators, pub landlords, caterers, chefs, and F&B directors navigating one of the most disruptive periods in industry history.
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Apr- 2022 -20 AprilApps & Technology
Just Eat mulls Grubhub sale amid subdued Q1 orders
Just Eat has confirmed it is considering a partial or full sale of Grubhub, as it downgraded its full-year growth expectations and saw orders in the first quarter of 2022 remain largely flat against last year. While it maintained the “high level” of orders that were processed during the pandemic…
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19 AprilFood and Drink
Recruitment and retention remain ‘major concern’ for hospitality
Staffing issues continue to set back hospitality’s recovery from Covid-19, according to new research from CGA and Fourth’s Business Leaders’ Survey. The poll shows “intense” competition for team members. Three in five (59%) say they will recruit at a greater rate than usual this year, an increase of 13 percentage…
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11 AprilPubs and Bars
Greedy Gordons Pub Group opens third site
Greedy Gordons Pub Group has opened its third site in Northamptonshire, The Snooty Fox at Lowick, near Thrapston. The site is a private leasehold which has been opened by owners Richard Gordon and Sonya Harvey following a £500,000 refurbishment. It was initially due to open in April 2020 but was…
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5 AprilPubs and Bars
Hospitality ‘optimistic’ on prospects but cost pressures threaten recovery
Almost two thirds of restaurant, pub and bar leaders are “increasingly optimistic” about the market’s prospects for 2022, according to CGA and Fourth’s Business Leaders’ Survey. The exclusive poll of multi-site business leaders found that 65% are confident about the next 12 months for the market—an increase of six percentage…
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Mar- 2022 -30 MarchFeatures
Sunak’s Spring Statement: What it means
“Businesses are going to be incredibly challenged to sustain themselves, having just begun some recovery after Covid,” reveals Lionel Benjamin, co-founder of AGO Hotels. The hospitality industry was already “decimated” by the Covid-19 pandemic and now, following Sunak’s announcement, the sector is being further burdened with VAT rates going back…
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28 MarchCafes and Coffee Shops
Starbucks UK revenue soars 35% in FY21
Starbucks has announced that UK revenues rose by 35% to £328m in the full-year ending 3 October 2021, largely driven by the recovery of sales in both company owned stores and franchised stores following the pandemic. Profit before tax hit £13.3m, up from a £41m loss reported in FY20, despite…
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25 MarchPubs and Bars
Weekend pub and bar transactions up 83% on pre-pandemic levels
Transaction volumes for pubs and bars over the weekend of 18-20 March were up 83.2% on the same weekend in 2019, according to data from Barclaycard Payments. Barclaycard said that transactions were also up 476.1% compared to the same weekend in 2020, the last weekend before the first Covid-19 lockdown).…
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18 MarchPubs and Bars
Feb deliveries and takeaways double pre-Covid levels but growth slows
Britain’s managed restaurant and pub groups’ delivery and takeaway sales continue to run at more than twice the level seen before Covid-19 – but trading has dipped from the peaks of early 2021. That is according to the latest CGA and Slerp Hospitality at Home Tracker, which found that groups’…
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18 MarchCatering Companies
J D Wetherspoon returns to normal trading amid improving sales
In the most recent three-week period, to 13 March 2022, J D Wetherspoon has revealed it has seen sales improve to just 2.6% lower than the equivalent period in 2019. In its preliminary results for the 26 weeks ended 23 January 2022, the group reported revenues of £807.4m, down by…
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14 MarchFood and Drink
Hospitality managed groups’ sales up 3% in February
Managed groups’ like-for-like sales in February were 3% higher than in February 2019, according to the Coffer CGA Business Tracker, produced by CGA in partnership with The Coffer Group and RSM. It revealed the lifting of all Covid-19 restrictions helped Britain’s managed restaurant, pub and bar groups to raise sales…
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