UK pub groups raise a glass to festive cheer: Christmas bookings for UK pubs and bars have jumped this year, as operators bank on festive parties and family gatherings to deliver a Santa rally after months of sluggish sales. In trading updates in recent weeks, Fuller’s, Young’s and Marston’s, three of the UK’s biggest listed pub groups, all reported Christmas bookings well ahead of last year. “Even if people are tightening their belts, they’ll still pop round for a quick pint especially at Christmas,” Marston’s chief executive Justin Platt told The FT. Festive bookings at the operator of 1,300 pubs across Britain were up 11% as of late November, compared with last year. “Heading into the festive season, which is the busiest time of year, there’s always a little bit of trepidation but the forecast looks good, the bookings look strong,” said Phil Urban, chief executive of All Bar One owner Mitchells & Butlers. Ian Dunstall, a director at Upham Inns, said he was seeing “big growth” in bookings for festive gatherings at its premium pubs across south-eastern England. Charlie Gilkes, the co-founder of bar and restaurant operator Inception Group, said Christmas bookings were “looking really positive” as corporate teams were increasingly drawn to “experiential venues” like his 1940s-themed cocktail bar chain Cahoots and concept pub brand Mr Fogg’s. He added that companies were increasingly incorporating experiences such as wreath-making and cocktail masterclasses into their festive parties. He said his 1990s-themed bar Bunga 90 had been particularly popular for its arcade machines and retro video game consoles. “There’s more of a push to make sure you’ve got that specific booking in that specific pub that you want,” said Simon Dodd, chief executive of Young’s. “People want to have a celebration and they don’t want anything to get in the way.” Platt said the trend was helpful because it offered visibility for staffing. But in this context, some are nervous that rising bookings may not necessarily mean rising sales. “It’s nice to have the bookings – but the walk-ins will be what makes the difference,” said Mitchell & Butlers’ Urban. “We’re by no means high and dry,” said Platt, adding that Marston’s was not taking Yuletide munificence for granted. The company is planning to launch a “12 Days of Christmas” series to reel in patrons, and said it had scheduled 10,000 events across its estate, from “Breakfasts with Santa” and festive dog-friendly coffee mornings to seasonal quizzes.

Admiral Taverns CEO – a strong Christmas period “pretty critical to help build up the reserves”: Chris Jowsey, chief executive of Admiral Taverns, has said that achieving a long-awaited boost from a strong Christmas period would “be pretty critical to help build up the reserves”. Jowsey told The FT he was hopeful that “everybody’s managed to save a bit and is ready to blow it at Christmas”. Jowsey said that the company’s more than 1,300 pubs had been “really quiet since around September”, as consumers trimmed their discretionary spending ahead of chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Budget. Businesses have accused the UK government of imposing a fresh “stealth tax” in the budget by making changes to business rates that they say make the levy more complex and, for some companies, add significant extra costs. Average rateable values – the figure used by local authorities to calculate rates the occupier must pay to the council – have risen 76% for hotels, 30% for pubs and 14% for restaurants, according to UKHospitality. Pub groups were already hit hard by the increase to employers’ national insurance contributions, which came into effect in April, and significant increases to the national minimum wage. Against this backdrop, Jowsey said that achieving the long-awaited boost from a strong Christmas period would “be pretty critical to help build up the reserves”.

Costa Coffee owner names Henrique Braun as new CEO: Coca-Cola, the owner of Costs Coffee, has announced that its chief operating officer Henrique Braun will be its next chief executive, succeeding James Quincey, who will step down next year after working to expand the soft drinks giant’s portfolio. Braun, who will take up his role from next March, joined Coca-Cola in 1996 and has held jobs in divisions including supply chain, marketing and bottling operations in North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia before taking on his current role in early 2025. During Quincey’s eight years as chief executive, Coca-Cola’s annual revenues have risen by more than $10bn to $47bn. Its stock price rose by 62% – almost double the increase of rival PepsiCo but just a third of the gain in the S&P 500 index. He also oversaw efforts to broaden Coca-Cola’s brands beyond the carbonated soft drinks that make up more than two-thirds of its global case volumes. Under Quincey, the business acquired Costa for £3.9bn in 2018, a deal that saw the company enter the hot beverages market. Costa is now up for sale for a price of roughly £2bn, with Quincey telling analysts in October that “the investment hypothesis didn’t work out as we expected” as Costa did not deliver enough growth outside of its stores. Quincey will become executive chair after he steps down as chief executive.

Cost of a three-course Christmas dinner at pubs and restaurants rises to £36: The cost of Christmas has continued to rise this year, as new figures from Meaningful Vision reveal that the average price of a three-course festive dinner in restaurant and pub chains across the UK has increased to £36 per person. Taken from analysis of price data at 5,000 locations owned by the country’s top hospitality groups, that represents an overall increase of 4% versus last year – but price rises slowed substantially on the 10% increase recorded during 2024. The survey found that the majority, 65%, of outlets have upped prices on their festive menus from 12 months ago, with an average hike of 9%. However, tough competition meant 20% have maintained and 15% have lowered their prices this Christmas. Menus in restaurants and fast-food outlets, specifically, rose by an average of 7% compared to 2024 – higher than the Office for National Statistics’ 5% rate of inflation on food and beverage items. Meaningful Vision said visits to food service outlets declined 0.4% between January and September, equivalent to 27 million individual transactions. For pub groups and casual dining chains, this means an average of 300 fewer visits every month per location, but for independent operators the decline is likely to be even higher. In response, around 20% of restaurants have removed their two-course dinners for Christmas 2025 and now only offer three-course options – typically up to £5 more expensive. Some outlets have also removed free drinks as part of their Christmas packages, offering food only. Maria Vanifatova, chief executive and founder of Meaningful Vision, said: “While the cost of eating at a restaurant or pub has increased this Christmas, the year-on-year difference is slightly less stark than we saw in 2024. A big reason for this is the pressures many hospitality providers are under in the form of rising costs, lower footfall, and more competition – that has forced more than one-third to maintain or cut their prices. That said, the majority of restaurants and pubs have raised their prices by more than inflation. At the same time, we are seeing more hospitality providers find other ways of increasing bill values and driving higher revenues, such as removing two-course options and some of the additional items that would typically be part of Christmas packages – such as a free welcome drink. Revenue figures for the industry as a whole may appear positive, but that mostly reflects inflation. Real like-for-like numbers show the market is under pressure and it will be a tough trading period for many restaurant and pub groups this Christmas.”

Domino’s hires Annie Murphy as new non-exec director: Domino’s Pizza Group has hired Annie Murphy as an independent non-executive director. Murphy will be a member of the board’s audit committee, remuneration committee, sustainability committee, and nomination and governance committee. She has held senior roles at a number of leading global consumer and retail companies, including PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble. Most recently, she served as senior vice-president, global chief commercial officer – Brands and International at Walgreens Boots Alliance until January 2023. She has also been an independent non-executive director of Associated British Foods Plc since September 2023. She will join the Domino’s board with effect from 5 January 2026. Ian Bull, chair of Domino’s Pizza Group said: “I am delighted to welcome Annie to the board of Domino’s. Annie has served in both executive and non-executive roles at some of the world’s leading consumer and retail businesses. She will be a strong addition to the board, bringing particular expertise in commercial and brand strategy, and we look forward to benefitting from her global experience.”