Selby – the opportunity to be the national Mexican brand is still there: Mark Selby, co-founder of Wahaca and DF Tacos, has said the opportunity for the business to be the national Mexican brand is still there, and he is excited by the potential of the latter concept. The business currently operates 13 restaurants under its eponymous brand and six DF Tacos sites, including three in Market Halls. Selby told this month’s Propel Multi-Club Conference that the business had a “few interesting opportunities coming our way now”. He said: “We were in an amazing place in 2016, where we were opening five or six sites a year. And then we got hit with a massive norovirus outbreak, which was our sort of own individual mini-covid where overnight we had to basically close all of our 22 restaurants, and sales fell off 40%. It was a very difficult time to basically take your business from going from making very, very healthy money to having effectively flat cash flow and trying to rebuild the whole brand. We were one of the strongest players in the casual dining space at the time, people moved us to one side of their brain and forgot about us. We’ve certainly been looking at sites, but we are now getting quite a few interesting opportunities coming our way. We are currently live in two to three different sites with regards to finalising legals. Hopefully, within the next year, we will certainly have one to two, maybe even three new sites. With DF Tacos, we felt there was this sort of accessibility point in the middle where people love tacos and enjoy that sort of interaction. I was going to move into running that business in 2016,but I had to then launch myself back into pulling Wahaca through, and the concept went stagnant for four or five years, but I’ve always loved it as a business. For me, it is an exciting opportunity. There’s no one else doing anything like it in this space of accessible delicious tacos. We were in the process of bringing in a great team to push it forward. We’re in all of the Market Halls, which has just given us a really interesting angle on how the concept is perceived, and in each one of them we are, if not the busiest, then the second busiest kitchen, and people are coming back to it. Our biggest problem has been consistency. When it works it’s brilliant and people absolutely love it. But when we get it wrong, whether with flavours or timings, it’s not a great experience. For us, it’s how do we make this a really consistent and fantastic product? There is that opportunity to still be that Mexican brand, across both Wahaca and DF Tacos. I think we were probably a top three brand in the UK in 2016. It’s about getting back people have gone ‘I used to love Wahaca’, and I think we are because our volumes are growing.” Selby’s presentation will be among the videos from the Propel Multi-Club Conference that Premium subscribers will be given exclusive access to on Friday, 29 September at 9am. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription. 

 

Sponsored message – last chance to register free for Casual Dining 2023: Doors open next week to Casual Dining 2023 (27-28 September). The whole hospitality industry will be there, will you join them? It’s not too late to secure your free ticket today and avoid the £50 door fee. Be inspired by 60-plus industry leaders speakers across three keynote theatres (sponsored by Uber Eats) – including experts from BrewDog, Pizza Pilgrims, Mowgli, Caravan, Honest Burgers, Dishoom, Wahaca, North Brewing and more.  For free registration, click here. If you have a sponsored message you would like to see featured in this newsletter position, email paul.charity@propelinfo.com. 

 

Property panel looking at the changing industry landscape to be held at final Propel Multi-Club Conference of 2023, three free places per company for operators: A panel looking at the changing industry property landscape will be held at the final Propel Multi-Club Conference of 2023. The conference takes place on Thursday, 16 November, at the Millennium Gloucester Hotel in London’s Kensington, and is open for bookings. The all-day conference will focus on “progress in an era of strong headwinds”. The panel, led by Stephen Owens, managing director of pubs and restaurants at Christie & Co, will feature Jenny Stratham, property director at McMullen; Chris Moore, property and strategy director at Star Pubs & Bars; and Graeme Bunn, property director at Red Oak Taverns. For the full speaker schedule, click here. Operators can book up to three free places per company by emailing kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com. Meanwhile, the Talent and Training Conference takes place on Tuesday, 3 October at One Moorgate Place in London. For the full speaker schedule, click here. Tickets are £295 plus VAT for operators and £395 plus VAT for suppliers and can be booked by emailing kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com.

 

Fast-growing pizza companies among 56 new businesses joining updated Premium Database of Multi-Site Companies: Fast-growing pizza companies are among the 56 new multi-site companies being added to the next edition of the Propel Premium Database of Multi-Site Companies, which will be released on Friday, 29 September, at midday. The updated Propel Multi-Site Database, which is produced in association with Virgate, features pizza concept Boss Pizza, which started as a lockdown project by Ajmal Mushtaq. It quickly grew to three sites in Scotland and has now expanded to England. Also featured is Tops Pizza, which has 70 sites and has recently added a new Brighton outlet, plus Pizza GoGo, which has 133 sites, predominantly in the south east of England. Premium subscribers are also to receive access to all the videos from this month’s Propel Multi-Club Conference and summer party. They will be sent 12 videos on Friday, 29 September at 9am. Premium subscribers also receive access to five other databases: the New Openings Database; the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book; the UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database; the UK Food and Beverage Franchisee Database; and the Who's Who of UK Food and Beverage. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription. Premium subscribers also receive their morning newsletter 11 hours early, at 7pm the evening before; regular video content and regular exclusive columns from Propel group editor Mark Wingett.

 

Almost half of consumers planning to visit hospitality venues over Christmas: Almost half of consumers (49%) plan to visit a pub, bar or restaurant over the Christmas period, according to new research by KAM. The findings showed while 34% said they planned to spend less this year when visiting venues, almost one in ten intend to visit a pub on Christmas Day, which is back to pre-pandemic levels, while Christmas Eve, Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve are following the same pattern. Two in ten (19%) respondents have already made their Christmas plans and 10% have already booked a pub or restaurant during the festive period, up 1% on last year. Only 27% of people said they won’t make plans until December – and most of these are either those without children, or those identifying as male. Four in ten said they will definitely be visiting a hospitality venue with 12 or more people. When it comes to booking, 46% want to speak directly to the venue, with 32% wanting a same-day response to an enquiry. Set menus/packages are popular with 37% of consumers, and 60% want to be able to pre-order their food from a set menu as it’s easier and less stressful, with 39% also wanting to pre-order drinks. Hospitality gifting remains popular, with 39% saying they would buy a gift card for a pub/restaurant as a Christmas present. 

 

Former ALMR CEO Nick Bish to step down as Purple Story chairman and retire: Nick Bish, former chief executive of the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR), is to step down from his position as Purple Story chairman in October and retire. Bish has enjoyed a long and celebrated career in hospitality and played an important role at Purple Story, not least guiding the entrepreneurial learning consultancy through a merger with the Transition business last year. Following an early career as regional director with Courage and Imperial Inns & Taverns, Bish was asked to set up and run the ALMR (later UKHospitality). He successfully led and grew the organisation for 21 years, during which time he established and championed the Operations Managers Awards. He later focused on the challenge of transforming skilful unit managers into successful, confident multi-site leaders. This was when he reconnected with Karen Turton and aligned the two businesses (Purple Story and Transition) into one company whose sole aim is to help others succeed. Turton said: “Nick’s highly successful career in hospitality means he is highly regarded throughout the industry, and I’m sure he will be missed by many.” Bish added: “My mission has always been to get hospitality businesses to focus on making individuals excel and equipping them to reach their potential. Following on from the ALMR Operations Managers Awards, it’s why I set up Transition, and why I so hugely admired Karen’s unstoppable passion, energy and talent in pursuing the same objectives. It was entirely sensible to fold Transition’s business into Purple Story, and I was delighted to be asked to be chairman to achieve that merger. It was an unexpected but gratifying extension to my long career in hospitality, and I like to think I’m now retiring and stepping down on a high note.”

UKHospitality urges rail unions to find strike solution: Trade body UKHospitality has urged the rail unions to find a solution the on going strikes, having already cost the hospitality industry £3.5bn in lost sales this year. The Aslef union today announced that its drivers will walk out on Saturday, 30 September and Wednesday, 4 October. In addition, the union has announced an overtime ban on Friday, 29 September and from Monday 2 to Friday 6 October. “As we have seen over the past year, hospitality businesses and their staff continue to suffer as collateral damage as a result of ongoing rail strikes,” said UKHospitality chief executive, Kate Nicholls. “It’s time that everyone involved gets back round the table to reach a resolution that sees the end to rail strikes. This is especially important for hospitality as we approach the busy Christmas period, the revenues of which are often crucial to help venues through the fallow period of January to March. Without an urgent end to this dispute, the £3.5 billion that hospitality has lost in sales will only continue to grow and that is not good for the thousands of hospitality businesses and the millions of people they employ.”

 

Job of the day: COREcruitment is working with a hospitality business seeking a global events director. A COREcruitment spokesperson said: “Your key responsibilities will include the commercial growth of the portfolio through identifying and developing new business opportunities through multiple business channels; the development of your team while staying ahead of the game and always looking to continuously improve the offer; the operational strategic planning and development to deliver short, medium and long-term business goals for the future growth and successful operational performance of the contract partnerships; the delivery of exceptional customer experience for the diverse range of events across the global portfolio; and much more.” The salary is up to £150,000 and the position is based in London. For more information, email dan@corecruitment.com. 

 

Metcalfe – Itsu has embraced technology unlike anybody else: Julian Metcalfe, founder and chief executive of Itsu, has told Propel the 85-strong, healthy Asian food chain has embraced technology “unlike anybody else”. The business said its app was its priority to build sales, relationships, loyalty, click and collect and personalisation. It is now in the “pockets of tens of thousands of loyal customers across the UK”, allowing people to join its “butterfly loyalty scheme”. Metcalfe said: “All our kitchens have Japanese sushi robots to help reduce the cost of manufacturing fresh sushi. The robots, which cost considerably more than a modern electric vehicle, save us hours of time and boring, repetitive work. We’ve also built and incorporated a tremendous amount of tech front of house. This includes installing hundreds of kiosks that allow our customers to bespoke their food as well as ordering quickly and efficiently. The tech on the kiosks links directly to our kitchens, where we make the fresh food. This reduces complexity and mistakes that irritate our customers. The technology allows our customers to self-order and pay. This reduces complexity and puts the customer in control. The further use of technology at Itsu embraces our digital totems and overheads that incorporate the highest possible resolution so we can show films and launch new dishes, etc. All this technology is linked, which helps enormously with pricing, allergens, ingredients, calories, etc. All this information is vital to benefit our customers. Essentially, no amount of tech makes up for delicious, affordable food and motivated, proud employees, but it does help. The paramount challenge being in the hospitality business in the UK post-Brexit is the increasing cost of staff performing mundane tasks that could be done better and more efficiently using technology. We hope Itsu is ploughing a balanced and prudent course with regard to this.” Earlier this week, Propel revealed Itsu is to open its “biggest and boldest site so far”, in London’s Bishopsgate, before the end of the year. The business will open a 2,200 square-foot, 59-cover site at 150 Bishopsgate, in November. Earlier this summer, Metcalfe told Propel that the business was “back to building temples” again, as it opened “major sites on corners”. It has also signed on a site in Oxford Street, and Metcalfe said the brand has “about eight great sites in the pipeline but need ten more”.

 

Watson – we are in a really strong position for whatever is in front of us next year: Clive Watson, executive chairman of City Pub Group, the owner and operator of premium pubs across southern England and Wales, has told Propel the business is “in a really strong position for whatever is in front of us next year” as it focuses on “measured growth”. The 42-strong business reported that its trading continues to be strong, with like-for-like sales up 14% in the 26 weeks to 25 June 2023. Watson said: “Interest rates are peaking and will probably come down next year, and inflation looks like it’s under control now, so there are rays of sunshine out there. We made a decision a year ago to de-gear the balance sheet and dispose of our Brighton pubs. We stabilised the business, then this year we will make record profits on debt levels £20m below when we last made record profits. We have restructured the balance sheet and have a big focus on organic growth, which is driving our profitability. We are in a really strong position for whatever is in front of us next year.” In terms of the asset prices for premium pubs, Watson said they “haven’t softened as much as they thought they were going to”. He said: “Vendors seem to be holding out, but that might change in January. Traditionally, that’s where there’s more opportunities. We’ve got a few acquisitions in negotiations, but we are also very focused on organic growth and driving like-for-like growth. Five new sites a year should be very doable. That’s quite modest given what we’ve done in the past, but it’s about measured growth. It’s getting the balance right between organic growth/like-for-like growth and nice, juicy bolt-on acquisitions rather than just going hell for leather and buying up everything that moves. We can buy if we want to, we have a fantastic balance sheet, but we want to get more out of the existing estate.” This will include adding rooms and developing new outside areas. Watson said: “Take the Hoste Arms near King’s Lynn. It had a spa area, which we have relocated, and put in a couple of big family rooms, so that widens the target market. There was a car park at the back of the Portcanna Inn in Cardiff which we don’t need, and now we have planning permission to have a 150-capacity covered seating area.” In terms of when it comes to acquisitions or expansion, Watson said the business would stick to its cluster approach. On any plans to open further sites under the group’s all-day dining concept Damson & Wilde in Bury St Edmunds, Watson added: “We are pub operators, not all-day dining operators. We’re sticking to wet-led sites with lower operating costs. It’s what we do best.”

 

WatchHouse appoints Michael Meates to oversee US launch: Specialty coffee concept WatchHouse has appointed Michael Meates to oversee its launch in the US, Propel has learned. Meates joins the Roland Horne-founded business as US operations director, as the company gears up to launch its first US site at 660 5th Avenue, New York this December. The company said the opening will “kickstart its expansion in the city in an underserved specialty coffee environment”. Meates previously spent two years as director of operations for the New York-based Black Fox Coffee. Prior to that, he was regional operations manager at Bluestone Lane for almost three years. The launch in the US comes after WatchHouse recently increased its estate in the UK with the opening of its first regional “House”, in Bath, and a recent further opening in London, in Covent Garden. The 13-strong business is set to open additional Houses before the end of the year in Belsize Park, Fenchurch Street and Hampstead. In July, the company strengthened its management team with the appointment of Julie Centracchio, previously of JD Wetherspoon, Peach Pub Company and Boston Tea Party, as its new finance director, joining Caroline Ottoy, who joined as managing director earlier this year.

 

Snowfox Group – reintroduction of Kaiten belt to all UK restaurants has supported repeat visits: Snowfox Group, which owns the YO!, Panku, Bento and Taiko brands, has told Propel that its reintroduction of the Kaiten belt to all UK restaurants has seen a “very positive consumer response and supported repeat visits”. Earlier this week, Japanese foodservice company Zensho Holdings completed its acquisition of the Snowfox Group in a deal valued at $621m (£494.5m). Commentating on its performance over the year to date, the business said that in terms of YO!, which operates 52 restaurants and 328 kiosks, it has continued to grow its presence at “attractive, high-footfall travel locations”. In recent months, the group has opened its first franchised YO! restaurant, at Luton airport, as well as a YO-to-Go format in York and a further international restaurant in Bergen. A further 155 sushi kiosks have also been opened, with the business now operating 300 kiosks in the UK with Tesco, and more than 130 kiosks within Asda supermarkets. The business told Propel it has a number of “exciting franchising opportunities” within these locations. Last year, it began a franchise trial in the UK with a Panku kiosk in an Asda in Peterborough. It said it had also expanded its existing UK commissary site to meet increased demand from new and existing customers. It also expects to further grow its commissary business in the US and Canada as “new and existing customers increase volumes”. It said: “Within commissaries, UK momentum has continued via new customer wins, as we provide pre-packaged sushi in premium meal deal ranges across Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose.” The company has also continued to roll out its Snowfruit offer and now has more than 950 kiosks open in locations across the US. Propel understands Snowfox is currently exploring the opportunity to launch its new Snowfruit franchise in the UK.

 

Gordon Ramsay Restaurants signs deal to expand into Thailand: Gordon Ramsay Restaurants has signed a multi-restaurant partnership with Tanachira Group, the company behind the Cath Kidston retail brand, to open 14 sites in Thailand. The new deal with “Thailand’s leading lifestyle operator”, is in line with the group’s expansion plans in Asia, with recent openings including four restaurants in South Korea and two in Malaysia. The new partnership will begin with the opening of two restaurants in the Emsphere Mall in Bangkok, in December, with a further 12 locations planned in the coming years. On the mall’s ground floor will be a Bread Street Kitchen & Bar, while on the first floor will be a Street Pizza site. Andy Wenlock, Gordon Ramsay Restaurants chief executive, said: “This new partnership with Tanachira Group continues our global growth, while bringing our fantastic casual and premium casual brands to a new audience in Bangkok, who we know love to go out, socialise and enjoy good food. Furthermore, we are delighted to be working with Tanapong and the whole Tanachira team, who follow the same ambitions as Gordon and myself.” Tanapong Chirapanidchakul, chief executive of Tanachira, added: “As we continue our journey as a leading lifestyle company in the region, we are delighted to be partnering with Andy and the Gordon Ramsay Restaurants team. In particular, we are excited that with the opening of both Gordon Ramsay Bread Street Kitchen & Bar and Street Pizza at the Emsphere in December.” 

 

New World Trading Co appoints Ed Williams as a regional operations director: Graphite Capital-backed pub restaurant group The New World Trading Company (NWTC) has appointed Ed Williams as its new regional operations director for the south. Williams previously had stints at Las Iguanas, TGI Fridays and Cosy Club. He joins Leane Patching at NWTC, who is the company’s regional operations director for the north. At the same time, Propel understands that Matt Bamber has left the business to pursue other interests. Bamber spent more than ten years at NWTC as its operations director. Propel revealed last month that NWTC had appointed Amber Wood, formerly of Loungers and Novus Leisure, as its new chief operating officer. Wood said: “As a proven leader, Ed will be an invaluable asset as we continue to strengthen and evolve the business. We are looking ahead to an exciting pipeline of openings while remaining focused on building sales, exceptional operations and industry innovation and delivering the very best guest experiences we can.” The 34-strong NWTC has new openings lined up in Sunderland, Durham and Bournemouth. Earlier this year, it opened its latest The Botanist venue, a flagship site at the St James Quarter in Edinburgh, and secured approval to open a site under the brand in Brighton’s Churchill Square.

 

Portuguese restaurateur Olivier da Costa makes UK debut: Portuguese restaurateur Olivier da Costa has made his UK debut. Costa has brought his Guilty by Olivier concept to the nhow London hotel, located on the Intersection of Islington, Clerkenwell and Shoreditch and owned by Minor Hotels. The “vibe-dining” concept joins Guilty by Olivier sites in Bangkok, Lisbon and Porto. The menu features dishes such as Shameless – an “indulgent” beef burger with baked tomatoes, pesto and crispy pancetta; and Galant Calzone – consisting of confit duck, mushrooms, truffle-flavoured olive oil and cream. Olivier Group consists of seven concepts across 26 restaurants, including Yakuza, SEEN and XXL Lisbon.

 

London pub operator opens 11th site and sets his sights on four more in next 12-18 months: London pub operator Austin Whelan has opened his 11th site and set his sights on four more in the next 12-18 months. Whelan, whose family-run AK Whelan Management portfolio consists of a mix of seven leased and four freehold pubs, including the Whelans Pubs brand, has just opened his latest freehold acquisition. Formerly known as the Manor House, and before that a Slug and Lettuce site, in Beckenham high street, the pub has undergone a £750,000 revamp and reopened as Erin’s, named after Whelan’s daughter. Erin’s is Whelan’s second Beckenham pub after The Elm Tree in Elms End, and like his other sites, the focus is on “top quality food and drink with live entertainment”. The layout has been reconfigured to seat 206, with a new central bar and zoned areas for different activities, while to the front are bifold doors leading to four outdoor tables. Whelan said: “I want to expand my portfolio to 15 sites in the next 12-18 months if good opportunities arise and am looking for more freeholds to increase the value of the business. Part of being a multiple operator is enjoying taking risks and seeing the rewards. The days of opening the pub door following a refresh have gone, you have to invest properly in properties and staff. Going forward, it’s investment that will mark out those that will be in business in the long-term and those that will fall by the wayside. Pub companies like Greene King and Star Pubs & Bars are keen to invest, and they can offer great opportunities. We work with both of them. As for this latest venture, Beckenham is desirable both to live in and as a destination with a very busy high street. It is a great place to invest in.” Whelan is also a co-owner of the Doolin Rock Pub Company with Colin Coogan, who told Propel earlier this month that it is set to open a fifth site and is eyeing further growth in 2024.

 

KFC franchisee remains on course for short-term target of 20 new restaurants despite decrease in turnover and profits: KFC franchisee Lars (GFUK) has said it remains on course for a short-term target of 20 new restaurants revealed last year, despite a decrease in turnover and profits in the year to 24 December 2022. The business – which operates KFC franchisees across Wales, Cheshire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire – currently operates 41 restaurants, having added sites in Rugeley and Tamworth during the year. “Lars (GFUK) Holding being the ultimate parent company, is still developing,” the business said. “It has two successful openings of new restaurants this year, creating 100 jobs. We have a strong pipeline of 20 restaurants planned in the next three years. We are recruiting more and more people in the local community to accommodate the requirements of future back vision of having 60-plus outlets.” It comes as the company made a pre-tax loss of £2,473,546 in the period compared with a profit of £5,121,142 in 2021. Turnover also fell from £70,699,996 in 2021 to £69,354,559. “Turnover was softer, with a fall of 2% compared with last year due to VAT rates changes, bringing this back to the normal 20% for quick service restaurants (QSR),” director Akram Khan said. “This does include a factor of post covid normalisation trade where things are coming back to normal. There has been lot of pressure of inflation on both food and Labour across the QSR industry. Franchisor has taken the price increase in phases to pass some of the inflation to customer.”

 

Treetop Adventure Golf to open in Gateshead next month for fifth venue: Discovery Adventure Golf, a partnership between former Goldman Sachs entrepreneur Elizabeth Stanway and experienced leisure operator Chris Richards, will open its fifth Treetop Adventure Golf site next month. The 17,500 square-foot site at Metrocentre, Gateshead, will launch on Friday, 6 October following a £2.5m investment with the immersive play operator, having previously signed a 25-year lease. It will feature two indoor 18-hole mini golf courses as well as a bonus 19th hole, offering all players the chance to win a free round. There will also be tropical cocktails and mocktails and coffee available from The Thirsty Toucan and Jungle Buzz Cafe. Stanway said: “This is our most extraordinary destination yet. Treetop Golf Gateshead will be a tropical wonderland unlike any other leisure experience.” The group also operates Treetop Adventure Golf sites in Cardiff, Manchester, Leicester and Birmingham.

 

Hospitality group launches in Northern Ireland with growth on the menu: A hospitality group has been formed to operate the Haslem Hotel and The Lark Bar in Lisburn and has plans to expand its Northern Ireland operations. The group is led by Nicky McCollum and Niall Burns, while three new roles have been created as the group forms a head office team. Helen Devlin has been appointed group financial controller, Victoria Ward as marketing manager and Caroline Curran as sales manager. Burns said: “With the formation of the Haslem Group, we are committed to reshaping Lisburn Square into a prominent leisure destination. Our new management team has assumed the daily operations of the Haslem Hotel and The Lark, as a vital element of our broader strategy to cultivate Lisburn Square into a vibrant leisure and business hub between Belfast and Dublin. We have invested heavily in both of our properties with great food, live music and live sport at the heart of our offering.” McCollum added: “We have exciting plans for the growth of the company and will carefully explore and pursue opportunities to further the group’s hospitality offerings in the months and years ahead.”

 

Pepperoni used in PizzaExpress for 50 years to be made available in supermarkets: Properoni, the pepperoni used in PizzaExpress for 50 years, is to be launched in supermarkets. Properoni will be available from 416 Tesco stores next month. Tom Horvath Neumann, managing director of Properoni, said; “Pepperoni is constantly cited as the nation’s favourite pizza topping. However, although we have supplied the finest pepperoni to leading restaurant chains for decades, this quality of product has never been made available to consumers in grocery retail. Properoni offers a real and visible difference for consumers, and our Tesco listing represents an exciting and game changing opportunity to transform the pepperoni market.”

Suffolk hotel group makes a loss as one of its venues remains closed: Suffolk hotel group Review Hotels, which operates the Bedford Lodge and Rutland Arms in Newmarket, made a loss in the year ending 31 March 2023 as one of its venues remained closed for the period. The 17th century Rutland Arms, which it acquired in 2018, remains shut after plans to redevelop the hotel, despite gaining planning approval, were halted by a covenant placed on adjoining land, where it planned to build a new annexe with additional rooms. In June 2022, the property was put up for sale with a £3m guide price. Director Michael Kean said the Rutland Arms not being able to trade, alongside increased costs, contributed to the business making a pre-tax loss of £55,913 in the year, following a profit of £523,399 in 2022. By contrast, he said, the Bedford Lodge had “traded positively”, contributing to a rise in turnover from £5,507,692 to £6,780,390. “Prior to the pandemic, a ‘normal’ trading year would usually see turnover in excess of £7m,” Kean said in his statement accompanying the accounts. “Following some difficult trading periods during the pandemic and during the aftermath, the company has managed to return to a trading level not dissimilar to those pre-pandemic levels. However, while trading activity and income has returned, the business has had to cope with the impact of the cost-of-living crisis in the UK. This has seen cost increases through wage inflation, food cost increase and a significant rise in utilities costs. The company’s main trading site, The Bedford Lodge Hotel, continues to trade positively despite the challenges and has generated a positive Ebitda for the period. The company’s second site, The Rutland Arms Hotel has continued to remain closed for the entire period and has therefore not generated any income, while continuing to give rise to some underlying costs.” Room occupancy at the Bedford Lodge rose from 54.6% in 2022 to 61.7%. No dividends were paid (2022: nil) and no government grants were received (2022: £141,394).

Team behind Japanese restaurant in London’s Mayfair to launch cocktail and sake bar: The team behind Japanese restaurant Ginza in London’s Mayfair is launching a cocktail and sake bar this month. Hiro – named after a district of Shibuya, in Tokyo – will also offer a concise menu of Japanese small plates. Mixologist Tony Vega will oversee the drinks, “with clean Japanese flavours at their core”. Cocktails will be met by a 70 strong collection of premium sake, alongside fine and rare Japanese whisky. Opened in 2020 in Bury Street, Ginza offers authentic Japanese cuisine. Within the restaurant space are three distinct counters that encompass a sushi omakase, teppanyaki and robata experience. Hiro will be located above Ginza.

Popeyes confirms October opening for Croydon site: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, the US fried chicken quick-service restaurant brand, has confirmed its new site in Croydon will open next month. Propel revealed in September 2021 that the business was in talks for a site in George Street in the London borough. It will now open at 43 George Street on Thursday, 12 October – the 15th Popeyes restaurant opening in 2023 and the 32nd since the brand's arrival in the UK in 2021. Tom Crowley, chief executive at Popeyes UK, said: “Croydon has been a key location for us since we first landed in the UK, and we’re looking forward to bringing the spirit of New Orleans to the borough. Our most recent openings have been some of the most successful to date, not just in the UK but for Popeyes globally, and we expect that Croydon will be equally as popular.” The restaurant will feature seating for up to 76 guests for inside and an additional 24 outside, as well as a takeaway service.