City Pub Company boss – “an AIM flotation is now a possibility”: City Pub Company will launch its fourth and final round of fund-raising in September aimed at generating a further £10m of investment across its two Enterprise Invest … view

Domino’s UK reports sales and profit growth – 14 German corporate stores under-perform: Domino’s has reported sales up 13.8% to £326.5m (2012: £286.9m) in the 26 weeks to 30 June. Profit before tax, excluding Germany and Switzerla … view

Tesco – food courts an important part of our plans: Tesco’s larger sites on the outskirts of towns will be turned into “retail destinations that are exciting, relevant and convenient”, new UK managing director Chris Bush has told … view

Gondola Holdings revises estimate of PizzaExpress potential in the UK: Gondola Holdings, which operates 680 restaurants in the UK serving 40 million meals a year, has revised downward it estimates of the roll-out potential of PizzaExpress … view

Giggling Squid receives approaches from private equity firms: Giggling Squid, the highly regarded six-strong Thai brand with ambitions to become the first national ‘modern’ Thai chain, has had a number of private equity approaches in … view

Fuller’s reports like-for-likes up 10% after ‘glorious weather’: Fuller’s has reported a strong first 16 weeks to 20 July 2013, ‘aided by the recent spell of glorious weather’. Total sales in managed pubs and hotels have incre … view

Shepherd Neame joins UK craft ale export push with US distributor: Britain’s oldest brewer, Shepherd Neame, has joined the current craft ale export push with a new deal with Canada’s oldest independent brewery, Moosehead Breweries, to … view

JD Wetherspoon on track to produce better outcome after margins increase: Managed operator JD Wetherspoon has reported that it is on track to produce a better outcome for its current financial year than previously anticipated. For the 11 … view

Peach Pub Company profits hit by wet summer: Peach Pub Company, the gastro-pub operator led by Lee Cash and Hamish Stoddart, has reported a 6% rise in turnover to £19,305,853 in the year to 30 December 2012. Group Ebitda was £1,540,552 … view

Amber Taverns in negotiations on seven more sites – set to hit 100 pubs next year: Amber Taverns, the wet-led operator led by James Baer and Bryan Wardman, is in negotiations to buy seven more pubs in the north east and north west, with … view

Tesco plans ten Giraffe openings this year: Family-friendly restaurant group, Giraffe, will open its first site within a Tesco store on 5 August in Watford Extra. With its own separate entrance, as well as access from the store, the 3,424 … view

BIS – statutory regulation should happen in the next session: The Business Innovation and Skills Committee has published its views on the current consultation by the government on statutory regulation of tenanted pub companies – and c … view

Horizons – average spend per meal out is up: Decline in Britain’s eating out market has slowed as the sector is bolstered by under 34 year olds, the most frequent users of eating out establishments. The new consumer QuickBite survey f … view

Spirit to evolve Chef & Brewer with premium offer: Spirit has told City analysts that it plans to evolve its 138-strong Chef & Brewer estate by creating a ‘collection of modern British country pubs with a more premium offer’. The next … view

Technomic – fast casual restaurants continue to grow fastest in the US: Market research firm Technomic has reported that the fast casual segment was the best performing part of the US market last year with sales up 13% – the largest c … view

Spirit reveals brand development plans: Managed operator Spirit Pub Company has revealed brand development plans on a field trip for City analysts. The company has been trialing a smaller 1,200 square foot template at Flaming Grill (usual … view

Luminar reports profit in first full year: Luminar, the UK’s largest nightclub company, has reported a profit before tax of £1.3m on turnover of £89.9m in the 12 months to 23 February. The company, which was bought out of administrati … view

Ask Italian – ‘we’ve been transformed by better food, design and recruitment’: Ask Italian, the Gondola-owned brand with 117 sites, has been re-energised by transforming its approach to menu content, design and staff recruitment, … view

CGA buys Peter Martin’s Peach Factory: CGA Strategy has acquired Peach Factory, the information and research company founded by Peter and Christine Martin. CGA Peach, a specialist retailer focused division of CGA Strategy, will bring to … view

Coffer Peach Tracker – pubs and restaurants saw sales up 1.9% in June: Britain’s restaurant and pub groups saw collective like-for-like sales increase 1.9% in June, against the same month last year. Total sales, including the impact o … view

Industry veteran Robert Breare found dead at home: Industry veteran Robert Breare has been found dead at his home in Ascot at the age of 60. Breare, once described as “Britain’s most shambolic corporate raider”, had a varied career … view

Everards set for go-ahead on £25m food village: Leicestershire brewer and retailer Everards is set to get go-ahead for a new £25m food village and visitor centre from its local authority. Blaby District Council is expected to back plans … view

Sky freezes pub subscriptions for third year: Sky is freezing subscription prices of its Sky Ultimate package for the third successive year. Prices will be held until at least June 2014, meaning that pub landlords will not have had a pric … view

Mezze chooses debt option rather than private equity funding for expansion: Mezze, the fast-expanding West County operator of high quality restaurants in pub settings, has opted for debt funding to allow expansion rather than take private … view

ALMR reports 62 new members in six months: The Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) has added 62 members in the first six months of 2013. The ALMR’s growth comes as it establishes itself as the key trade body for multi-site … view

Benugo reports big jump in turnover and profit: Benugo, the company that runs high street cafe delis and restaurants as well as providing catering in the Natural History Museum and the British Museum, has reported turnover leapt 28% to £ … view

Wadworth reports fall in pre-tax profit: Brewer and retailer Wadworth & Co has reported a fall in its pre-tax profit after a “disappointing” period during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games - £3,438,000 in the year to 30 Se … view

Restaurant Group and Giraffe unveil new concept: The Restaurant Group and Giraffe, the family dining brand owned by Tesco, have unveiled a brand new casual all day dining concept, Wondertree, to be opened at Heathrow’s ‘Terminal 2: Th … view

Patisserie Valerie to open in second Scottish city – plans 25 openings this year: Artisan baker and cafe chain Patisserie Valerie is to expand into Glasgow with two new branches after success at three sites in Edinburgh, its only sites … view

Creditors to lose £2.25m from 52-strong pubco collapse; administrator investigates ‘relevance’ of hedging product: Unsecured creditors are set to lose £2,250,000 from the collapse of HK Taverns in the wake of the death of its contro … view

Heartstone Inns sets 50 freehold pub target: Heartstone Inns, the operator of freehold pubs led by James Birch, has set a target of expanding to as many as 50 freehold pubs after embarking on its latest and final round of EIS fund-raising … view

Mitchells & Butlers’ Browns opening in Liverpool further sign of renewed brand confidence: Mitchells & Butlers is to open a new Browns Bar & Brasserie in the Liverpool One leisure complex in a £1m investment that will create 75 jobs. I … view

Asian restaurant sector backs VAT campaign: The Federation of Bangladeshi Caterers (FoBC) and the Asian Caterers Federation (ACF) have thrown there considerable weight behind the hospitality industry’s campaign to cut VAT on restaurant … view

Glendola Leisure paid £600,000 for two Enterprise leases: Glendola Leisure, the operator of 19 sites headed by Alex Salussolia, has paid over £600,000 to buy two Enterprise Inns leased sites, it has emerged. Enterprise Inns chief execut … view

Wagamama hires M&B marketing chief: Wagamama, the Japanese-inspired restaurant chain, has hired Simon Cope as its new marketing, property and international franchising director. Cope joins from Mitchells & Butlers where he worked for twel … view

Andy Bassadone wins Restaurateur of the Year at the Cateys: Andy Bassadone won Restaurateur of the Year at the Cateys last night. Judge James Horler, chief executive of 3 Sixty Restaurants, said: “To achieve a system-led roll-out of a u … view

Research shows pubs increasingly becoming weekend haunts: New research from The NPD Group shows that Britain’s pubs are increasingly becoming weekend haunts and that weekday business is weakening. Between 2011 and 2012 weekday visits to … view