Black Sheep on stirring up the coffee industry, volcanic plantations, and helping the homeless May 7, 2019 We might be a nation best known for drinking tea, but Brits are increasingly obsessed with coffee. According to market analyst Allegra, we spent a tea-spitting £10.1bn in coffee shops last year. You can’t walk 100 yards in most town centres without stumbling on a Starbucks, Costa, or Cafe Nero – though, with many coffee [...]
Former high court judge to review Lloyds’ compensation payouts to HBOS fraud victims May 3, 2019 Lloyds Bank has launched an independent review of its HBOS victims compensation scheme. The bank has appointed former high court judge Ross Cranston to assess the outcome of the recently completed customer review, which has handed out more than £96m in compensation to victims of the HBOS Reading fraud. Read more: Former Hbos chief executive [...]
China expansion and UK troubles take a slice out of earnings at Pizza Express April 30, 2019 Pizza Express reported a slump in underlying earnings this morning, as expansion in China and tough trading conditions in the UK hit the group. Read more: SSE talks to Talktalk over £1bn retail unit after scrapping Npower deal In the latest sign of distress within the casual dining sector, Pizza Express posted a 15.3 per [...]
Greene King shares fall despite sales growth during bumper Easter April 30, 2019 Pub chain Greene King is set to post moderate sales growth for the full year after its strong Christmas trading carried over into the Easter period. The pub operator and brewer said it expects like-for-like sales growth of 2.9 per cent in the 52 weeks to 28 April, ahead of market expectations. Read more: Brewer [...]
Critics slam ‘absurd’ TfL junk food ad ban as fast food delivery sites allowed to advertise on Tube and buses April 28, 2019 Junk food and takeaways are still being promoted by stealth across London's public transport network via the likes of Just Eat and Deliveroo adverts, despite a recent TfL crackdown. Read more: Mind the ban! How TfL's junk food ad ban may fail to tackle obesity Opponents of TfL’s ban, which prevents images of food items that [...]
Cafe bar operator raises £83m ahead of float as valuation comes in below City expectations April 24, 2019 Cafe bar operator Loungers has raised more than £80m today ahead of its listing next week. Read more: Restaurant sector defies confidence slump as UK leisure spending grows However, the group is set to valued at £185m when it floats, falling below City expectations of a £250m market capitalisation. The owner of 146 neighbourhood, café bars [...]
Ashwin Bhardwaj travels to the cultural heart of Russia, to eat and drink with the locals of St Petersburg April 17, 2019 There are not many places that have left me literally gobsmacked, but the moment I stepped outside the Finljandski Train Station in St Petersburg, I knew that I had arrived somewhere special. It was here, in 1917, that Vladimir Lenin stepped back onto Russian soil after nearly 20 years of exile. He had taken the [...]
Just Eat announces acquisition of software provider Practi April 16, 2019 Just Eat has acquired Practi, a software service that trades in tablet-based Point of Sale (PoS) and restaurant management systems. The food delivery marketplace has bought Practi for £6.7m, with further payments dependent on certain commercial milestones. Just Eat plans to roll out Practi's software to its restaurant partners, providing partners with PoS, payment handling, inventory management, [...]
The City’s towers rise up from ancient streets, and the contrast is sublime April 12, 2019 We can become desensitised to the rich history and incredible architectural tapestry that makes the City what it is. We can shuffle from Tube station to office to restaurant and home again, all without stopping as often as we should to take note of our surroundings and consider our immense good fortune that we work [...]
City Pub Group share price rises as it returns to profit after 2017 loss April 9, 2019 City Pub Group pulled itself back into profit in 2018, it revealed this morning, as it said it intends to continue its expansion in London and the south east. Read more: City Pub Group sales rise amid string of acquisitions Its shares opened 7.3 per cent higher on London's Alternative Investment Market (Aim) this morning, [...]