Deliveroo reports fourth quarter of growth acceleration: Deliveroo has reported growth accelerated for the fourth consecutive quarter, with group orders up 114% year-on-year to 71 million and gross transaction value up 130% year-on-year t … view

Backer of Bird restaurant brand acquires half of former Dining Street business: Crown Partnership, the backer of fried chicken and waffle chain Bird, is understood to have secured more than half of sites operated by Dining Street, the com … view

The team at John Gaunt and Partners has been incredibly eager to get back to our favourite venues. We sat cold, but smiling, in our local pub garden, The Stag in Sheffield, for a celebr … view

Hawthorn looks to IPO as a standalone business: Community pub company Hawthorn has today unveiled plans to list on the stock market as a standalone quoted business, heralding the return of a tenanted and leased pub group to the London sto … view

JD Wetherspoon still losing £3m a week despite return of beer gardens, Scottish reopening plan ‘meaningless’ given indoor alcohol ban and curfew: The impact of trading restrictions on the sector has been highlighted in both England a … view

Revolution Bars Group to launch experiential seaside fairground-inspired bar and ‘community hub for entrepreneurs’ concepts: Revolution Bars Group is to launch an experiential seaside fairground-inspired bar with pizza offer and a “ … view

Pubs and restaurants fear covid passports would cut profits by a quarter: Businesses fear that covid passports would slash pub and restaurant profits by a quarter, according to a new survey. According to The Telegraph, a survey of members … view

Sessions Market secures new investment, strengthens head office team: Sessions Market, the food hall concept backed by Imbiba and led by former Deliveroo managing director Dan Warne, has secured further investment and strengthened its hea … view

S&P – most pub operators will take up to three years to rebuild finances to 2019 levels, larger companies have better recovery prospects: Most pub operators will take up to three years to rebuild their financial profiles to 2019 levels, … view

Two-thirds of pubs lack outdoor space to open on Monday: Two-thirds of pubs cannot open on Monday (15 April) because they lack the outside space to serve customers safely, it has emerged. Pubs, cafes and restaurants in England can open fo … view

Loungers secures 12-month extension to bank facilities; taking phased approach to reopening: Cafe bar operator Loungers has announced it has secured a 12-month extension to the bank facilities it secured last April, which now provides the … view

WatchHouse to ramp up openings, secures first regional site, plans international launch: Edition Capital-backed coffee concept WatchHouse plans to open a further six sites in the UK by the end of this year, including its first regional la … view

Neds Noodle Bar in fundraising talks, opening sixth site with Milton Keynes launch: London-based Neds Noodle Bar is in fundraising talks as it looks to accelerate its growth through its franchise model. Co-founder James Breslaw told Prope … view

Kaye brothers to step down from Tasty board, company continuing to work on various strategic options available: Wildwood operator Tasty has said brothers Adam and Sam Kaye, who played key parts in the creation of the business, in which th … view

Judge rules in favour of expedited resolution to why hospitality can’t open at same time as non-essential retail: A judge has ruled that the legal action seeking to reopen indoor hospitality at the same time as non-essential retail will … view

Papa John’s to make pub debut in Staffordshire: Papa John’s is to be available from a pub for the first time. The company has teamed up with Staffordshire-based pub the Saracen’s Head, to offer customers pizza with their pint. From … view

Exclusive – Wasabi founder to launch Pelicana in the UK: Wasabi founder DongHyun Kim has acquired the UK franchise rights to South Korean fried chicken brand Pelicana and is planning four openings this year. Pelicana is South Korea’s … view

Government refuses to shut door on ‘vaccine passports’ for pubs and restaurants as outdoor hospitality gets go-ahead to reopen next week: The government has not shut the door on pubs and restaurants having to ask customers to … view

Government to ditch plans to force customers to show vaccine passports when they visit the pub: Prime minister Boris Johnson has ditched plans to force customers to show a vaccine passport every time they go into a pub or restaurant. Acco … view

As many as 30,000 sites could close if the government does not stick to lockdown lifting plan: Up to 30,000 pubs, bars and restaurants will close if ministers do not stick to the roadmap out of lockdown, UKHospitality has warned. Thousand … view

Byron set to open its first new site for five years: Better burger brand Byron is set to open its first new site for five years as part of its expansion plans, Propel has learned. It is understood the new site, which is believed to be loc … view

Fuller’s prepares for re-opening with share placing: London-based pub operator Fuller’s is to place up to 6,455,447 new ‘A’ Ordinary Shares at a price of 830 pence each – to raise circa £53m. There is also an issue of B shares. … view

Anand – acquisition of 42 pubs from Stonegate is first step in our plan to build a differentiated pub company: Rooney Anand, executive chairman of new investment vehicle RedCat Pub Company, has said the group’s acquisition of a 42-str … view

Next month, the UK’s hospitality sector will begin its great reopening… again. In contrast to last year’s emergence out of the first lockdown, it will do so with hope emboldened by a … view

JD Wetherspoon to invest £145m in new pubs and upgrades, creating 2,000 jobs: JD Wetherspoon is set to invest an initial £145m developing new pubs and upgrading existing pubs – creating 2,000 jobs in the process. The company is keen t … view

JW Lees set to target acquisition of suburban pubs in north west heartland, secures £10m funding line: North west brewer and retailer JW Lees is set to target acquisitions of suburban pubs in its heartland as it builds back from the pand … view

Tim Martin warns vaccine passports would be ‘last straw’ for pubs, culture secretary says they would not be permanent: JD Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin has said vaccine passports would be “the last straw” for struggling pubs and … view

Campbell – we have got to wean ourselves off discounting and move forward, the customer is the focus of everything we do: David Campbell, group chief executive of PizzaExpress, has said the company has got to wean itself off discounting … view

Three in five licensed premises won’t have space to trade outside, managed operators and larger regional cities proving most resilient against pandemic: About three in five licensed premises will not have some kind of space to trade fro … view

Track and trace to resume for hospitality with every customer legally required to sign in: NHS Track and Trace is set to resume for hospitality businesses upon reopening with every customer being legally required to sign in, and not just … view

Bubblewrap sets out ambitious rollout plan: London-based waffle cone concept Bubblewrap is to pursue an aggressive development plan across the UK and selected international markets in partnership with business developer Seeds Consulting, … view

New vehicle Aspirational Brands to oversee rollout of multiple concepts, including Handmade Burger Co: Aspirational Brands, a new growth vehicle, has been formed to roll out a number of concepts across the UK, including Handmade Burger Co … view

Kate Nicholls – proposals to bar pub customers who have not had vaccine ‘unworkable’: UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls has said proposals to allow pubs to bar entry to customers who have not had a covid vaccine would be � … view

Greene King in discussions with landlords on Loch Fyne estate: Brewer and retailer Greene King has started discussions with landlords of its Loch Fyne restaurant business, ahead of making a decision whether to formally proceed with a comp … view

Social Entertainment Ventures rebrands, appoints Strahan Wilson as new CFO: Social Entertainment Ventures (SEV), the US and UK experiential leisure operator, has rebranded under the new name State of Play Hospitality, and appointed Straha … view

Leon closes US business to focus on UK and Europe: Natural fast food brand Leon has closed its operations in the US, to focus on its business in the UK and Europe, Propel has learned. The John Vincent-led business launched in the US in Se … view

Shadow cast on Deliveroo £9bn listing: Deliveroo is facing investigations in Europe over the legal status of its riders, potentially casting a shadow over its £9bn stock market listing. The company revealed in the prospectus for its ini … view

Loungers co-founder Bishop invests in Hub Box, as it gears up for next stage of growth: Jake Bishop, co-founder of Loungers, has invested in Hub Box, the south west-based burger and barbecue concept led by Richard Boon, as it looks to ope … view

US fried chicken brand Popeyes plans UK launch: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, the US fried chicken quick service restaurant brand, has announced plans to enter the UK this year, with the goal of opening 350 new restaurants in Britain over th … view

Deliveroo IPO admission could be priced at up to £8.8bn, as its sets price range: Deliveroo’s initial public offering has been set at £3.90 to £4.60 per share, implying an estimated market capitalisation at admission of between £7.6 … view

Stenning – the hospitality sector in 2021 has lost further ground following the Budget: Simon Stenning, leading sector analyst and founder of FutureFoodservice, has said the hospitality sector in 2021 has lost further ground following t … view

Berenberg – Loungers could grow to reach 1,000 sites with an equity value of £2bn: Cafe-bar operator Loungers could eventually grow its current circa 170-strong estate to reach 1,000 sites and see its equity value grow to in excess of … view

Exclusive – Imbiba invests in Pizza Pilgrims: Hospitality investor Imbiba has invested £3.5m into Pizza Pilgrims, the London-based pizzeria concept founded by Thom and James Elliot, to aid its future expansion plans, Propel has learned … view

Bowley – the big question we are looking to crack is what’s the operating model of the future?: Zoe Bowley, managing director of PizzaExpress, has said the past 12 months has allowed every bit of the business to be evaluated and has l … view

Stonegate hit by £746m loss on back of pandemic-led pub closures: Stonegate Pub Company has reported a £746m pre-tax loss after the coronavirus regulations forced it to close the majority of its pubs and turn to investors and debt marke … view

Parliamentary committee – hospitality sector has not seen sufficient data to underpin decisions relating to its industry: A report published earlier this week by the House of Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Sele … view

Reilley – the government must bring landlords and tenants to the negotiating table: Landlords and tenants must be brought to the negotiating table by the government in order to avoid catastrophic business failures when the rent moratori … view