WatchHouse CEO: Before I did coffee, I designed aquariums for billionaires Opinion Each week, we dig into the memory bank of the City's great and good. Today, WatchHouse CEO Roland Horne takes us through his eclectic career.
Hollywood Bowl calls on dynamic pricing as heatwaves hit sales Leisure Hollywood Bowl called on its dynamic pricing system to endure falling ten-pin demand during the summer’s record heatwaves, prompting a share price boost. Britain’s biggest ten-pin bowling operator said the summer’s “exceptionally prolonged, dry weather” had “heavily impacted” its trading, as UK like-for-like revenue fell 5.6 per cent in the second half of this year. [...]
Former Whitbread bosses mastermind takeover of Beefeater restaurants Hospitality Former senior managers at Whitbread have advised on a deal to buy back nearly 60 restaurants from the group, after it wound up its Beefeater and Brewers Fayre chains last month. Common Table Group, a British hospitality firm, has agreed to buy 57 restaurant sites and one Premier Inn hotel from the FTSE 100 hotels [...]
Wetherspoon boss blasts Soho’s ‘barmy’ vertical drinking crackdown October 4, 2026 JD Wetherspoon boss Sir Tim Martin has blasted Westminster Council’s “barmy” curbs on vertical drinking, which he said are “inhibiting business”. Martin, the chairman of Britain’s best-known pub chain, has waded into a row over the Council’s restrictions on so-called “vertical drinking” in Soho and an effective ban on new pubs and bars in the [...]
Is Soho nightlife really dead? We went partying to find out October 3, 2026 “I’m trying to prove you can still have a great night out in Soho,” I say. “You can. But not a late one,” replies Lesley Lewis over a glass of white wine at her beloved pub the French House. “I’ve always loved Soho,” says the legendary proprietor, who has run the French House for 37 [...]
Gordon Ramsay restaurants top £100m as Lucky Cat ‘star performer’ October 2, 2026 Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant group took more than £100m in revenue in the UK last year, as the group named its five Bishopsgate sites its “star performer”. The celebrity chef’s 34 UK restaurants posted a three per cent uplift in revenue to £100.7m in 2025, as its operating loss narrowed from £7.3m to £5.8m. Gordon Ramsay’s [...]
Wetherspoon boss attacks Labour for ‘high street dereliction’ as profit falls October 2, 2026 Pub chain Wetherspoon has hit out at the government for causing “high street dereliction” by hiking taxes, as the company’s profit slipped by a quarter. The London-listed pub group saw revenue jump by five per cent to £2.2bn in the year to July – in line with analyst forecasts – though pre-tax profit fell further [...]
Mike Ashley continues leisure push with Boom Battle Bar deal September 30, 2026 A company backed by Mike Ashley has snapped up Boom Battle Bar for £11m, extending the retail tycoon’s push into leisure and hospitality. Leisure operator We Do Play, which is backed by Ashley’s Frasers Group, has bought back the business its bosses founded from experiential leisure group XP Factory. Mike Ashley began his retail empire [...]
Greggs puts 740 jobs at risk as baker braces for worse inflation September 30, 2026 Greggs has announced a shakeup of its manufacturing processes which could lead to the closure of four factories and cost 740 jobs, as the baker warns of “greater inflationary pressures” across its business. The sausage roll seller told shareholders on Wednesday that it is consulting on a move to consolidate its manufacturing operations, which would [...]
New Brewdog owner mounts comeback from ‘horrible’ collapse September 29, 2026 The new owner of Brewdog has launched a comeback for the company after it collapsed earlier this year, blaming “horrible” sales during its change of ownership on “negative” media reports. The craft beer firm saw sales slump by as much as 20 per cent year on year following its takeover by US cannabis and drinks [...]