FTSE 100 Live: US stocks sink on open; Iran warns oil price could hit $200 Markets Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The chaos in global markets of last following the breakout of conflict in the Middle East is poised to continue as tensions in the Gulf showed no sign of slowing down over the weekend. The price of oil notched its highest gains in a single [...]
Hugh Osmond-backed restaurant group snaps up pubs to launch new brand Hospitality The restaurant group backed by British businessman Hugh Osmond has bought four pubs for more than £11m as it launches a new brand. London-listed Various Eateries has bought the four sites – in the Cotswolds, Berkshire, Surrey and Hampshire – from Grosvenor Pubs and Inns for £11.5m. The group said “premium” pubs with rooms remain [...]
From Pizza Express to Channel 4: Who is Luke Johnson, Revolution Bars Group’s new chair? Retail After a lengthy restructuring process that included £12.5m in emergency funding, Revolution Bars has appointed Luke Johnson as its new chair. The former Pizza Express and Channel 4 chairman provided £3m of the financing and owns a 20 per cent stake in the company. He will replace outgoing chair Keith Edelman, whose nine years in the role [...]
Hugh Osmond-backed Various Eateries blames “one of the wettest winters since records began” May 14, 2024 The company behind the Coppa Club and Noci restaurant brands has blamed "one of the wettest winters since records began" for a fall in its like-for-like sales.
Homebase could be on the market again after £1 sale February 27, 2024 Homebase could reportedly be put up for sale again after it was sold for £1 to Hilco Capital back in 2018. A number of parties have reportedly held talks with the restructuring giant about snapping up the garden chain including The Range and B&M Bargains. It was reported by The Times that there was speculation [...]
Hugh Osmond-backed Various Eateries plots Noci expansion as it absorbs inflation price hikes February 1, 2024 The firm said it would open 10 more of its Italian inspired Noci restaurants and three more Coppa Club sites.
Punch Taverns founder: Hospitality will be ‘almost completely uninvestable’ should Covid restrictions return April 12, 2022 Pizza Express guru Hugh Osmond has said the hospitality industry will be “almost completely uninvestable” if it is put in a position where the government can completely shut it down in future virus outbreaks. The Punch Taverns founder is part of a coalition, with Night Time Industry Association boss Michael Kill and Greater Manchester night [...]
Pubs and bars anxiously wait to see if Omicron headlines have impacted customer confidence December 1, 2021 Hospitality firms are anxiously awaiting to see if Omicron variant headlines have hit consumer confidence. The bosses of both Loungers’ and Marston’s told CityA.M. that it was too soon to tell if bar goers had been deterred from making trips to venues after news of a new Covid variant. Loungers’ CEO Nick Collins said he [...]
High Court rules against hospitality bosses on indoor closures May 5, 2021 Hospitality bosses have lost their legal battle for a quicker reopening of indoor hospitality in England. Punch Taverns founder Hugh Osmond and Sacha Lord, the night-time economy adviser for Greater Manchester, brought a case against the government challenging the current rules. Lord and Osmond said there was no justification or scientific bias for pubs and [...]
Coppa Club owner Various Eateries circles struggling competitors September 10, 2020 Various Eateries, the owner of restaurant chains Strada and Coppa Club, is planning to raise £25m through an AIM listing as it seeks to buy competitors that have fallen victim to the coronavirus crisis. The firm, which was founded by Hugh Osmond, who led the rapid expansion of Pizza Express, is aiming to expand by [...]