Leadership
We spotlight leadership across the UK foodservice and hospitality sector, from executive appointments and strategic decision-making to crisis management and cultural change. This gathers our reporting on the individuals and teams shaping the direction of restaurant groups, pub chains, catering companies, and food-led businesses. Whether you’re a founder scaling up, an F&B director guiding brand evolution, or an operator navigating market headwinds, our leadership coverage explores what effective management looks like in a fast-changing industry, with real-world lessons for decision-makers at every level.
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Jan- 2021 -13 JanuaryPeople
The Breakfast Club appoints interim MD
The Breakfast Club has appointed Steve Locke, co-founder of the UK pub chain All Bar One, as its interim managing director. Owner of the self-proclaimed “caf”, Jonathan Arana-Morton, first opened applications for the role in November 2020 through an online statement. At the time he made his need for “a…
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Dec- 2020 -21 DecemberBreweries and Distilleries
Heineken UK names new managing director
Heineken, the multinational brewing company, has appointed David Flochel as the new managing director for its UK arm. Flochel will commence his role as of 1 January 2021, taking over from interim managing director Simon Amor, who had held the role since David Forde’s departure in July of this year.…
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7 DecemberCoronavirus
Star Pubs and Bars offers licensees up to 90% rent concessions
Star Pubs and Bars has announced it is investing £5m in rent concessions this December, as its venues across the UK are still unable to operate fully due to Covid-19. The group’s support has been devised in line with the new tiered system, with Tier one licensees being offered a…
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3 DecemberCatering Companies
Compass names Matt Thomas as MD for RA Group
Compass Group UK and Ireland has announced the appointment of Matt Thomas to its executive team as MD of RA Group on 4 January 2021. RA Group is a collection of specialist food and guest services companies and includes Restaurant Associates, Rapport, RA Venues and commercial restaurant partnerships including City…
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Nov- 2020 -6 NovemberPeople
Pizza Express names new chairman and group chief exec
Pizza Express has announced that Allan Leighton and David Campbell have been appointed as chairman and group chief executive. Along with the appointments, Pizza Express revealed the completion of its recapitalisation, giving the company a “strong balance sheet and significant funds to invest in growth in the years ahead”. The…
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Sep- 2020 -14 SeptemberPeople
The Big Table appoints Mike Tye as chairman of The Big Table
The Big Table, which was recently formed to acquire and operate the Bella Italia, Café Rouge and Las Iguanas restaurant brands, has appointed Mike Tye as its non-executive chairman. With “extensive” board-level experience across the out-of-home food and drink market, the company said Tye will work closely with Epiris, the…
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Aug- 2020 -21 AugustComment
GMs must be front of house to reassure customers and staff post-lockdown
The best hospitality operators definitely took a ‘glass half full’ approach when lockdown was imposed and looked for the opportunities in a situation that was beyond their control, rather than railing against it. Enforced closure allowed for the reflection and review that are hard to make time for when you’re…
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Apr- 2020 -7 AprilCoronavirus
PCA demands support for pub tenants
The Pubs Code Adjudicator (PCA) has called on all pub-owning businesses not currently waiving rent to demonstrate how they will support their tenants as the coronavirus crisis continues. The authority said it is currently aware of five pub companies, regulated under the Pubs Code, that have not yet waived any…
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Mar- 2020 -31 MarchPeople
Domino’s appoints Dominic Paul as new CEO
Domino’s Pizza Group has announced the appointment of Dominic Paul as its new CEO, with effect from 6 April. Paul will also join the board as CEO on 1 May 2020. Most recently, he served as chief executive officer and managing director of Costa Coffee. He led the Costa brand…
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24 MarchBusiness
Contactless spending limit to rise to £45
Barclaycard has announced it will be rolling out the deployment of a new £45 contactless limit across UK retailers from 1 April 2020. The payments provider, which enables almost half of the UK’s credit and debit card transactions, said that the increased threshold would “help to prevent” the spread of…
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