Chancellor opens door to expanding business rates support to wider hospitality industry: Chancellor Rachel Reeves has opened the door to expanding her business rates U-turn beyond pubs to other hospitality businesses. Reeves said yesterday (Wednesday, 14 January) changes to business taxation would have to be carried out “in a balanced way” and details of a more generous transition package would be announced “in the days to come”. Until now the Treasury has insisted the post-Budget business rate U-turn would be limited to pubs, with some government officials fearing a wider package potentially costing hundreds of millions of pounds might “spook the markets”. Reeves confirmed she was looking to provide additional support to businesses with their rates beyond the £4.3bn of transitional relief that has already been earmarked for the next three years. “We need to make sure that we do that in a balanced way that particularly supports our pubs and the hospitality sector,” the chancellor told the BBC. That comment will come as a relief to hotels and potentially other hospitality businesses, such as music venues, which had complained that – like pubs – they had been hit hard by a post-covid business rate revaluation. Sir Rocco Forte, chairman of Rocco Forte Hotels, said his group was facing a 115% increase in business rates over the next three years. He told The Mail: “A temporary sticking plaster solution targeted only at pubs will go nowhere near far enough. This is not fair and sustainable – and many other types of business, ranging from pharmacies to gyms, are also going to be hammered. A bold, ambitious government would be looking at real rates reform to level the playing field between online businesses who pay little or nothing and bricks and mortar businesses that bear the brunt.” However, the chancellor suggested shops were unlikely to receive extra help because many had stayed open during the pandemic and therefore their “rateable values” – estimates of a premises’ annual rent used to calculate rent – had not fluctuated so wildly. Government officials confirmed to the FT that Reeves was considering broadening the support package to the wider hospitality sector but any details would be announced in the next few days.

Propel 500 report – coffee sector looks to light-touch growth: The coffee market is increasingly looking to franchising to fuel its ongoing expansion, reports Tim Street, Propel’s chief sub and deputy editor. Street was writing in Propel 500 – 2026, the sector-leading report covering the top 500 hospitality companies in the UK. He found that, despite rapid growth leading to multiple sites under the same brands in close proximity, cannibalisation was yet to prove an issue, saying: “It is perhaps a reflection of the nation’s ever-growing love of coffee, and of the coffee house as an increasingly attractive alternative to the pub as a place to meet and socialise”. The 45,000-word report includes exclusive analysis to provide a full understanding of the market's dynamics, as the top companies in the sector shift position after a challenging year. Mark Wingett reviews the mergers and acquisitions changing the shape of the Top 500 as size increasingly matters, while Katherine Doggrell examines the key developments in UK hotels and look into one of the sector’s brightest lights, experiential leisure. Mark Bentley, business development director at HDI, looks at emerging growth sectors, while Meaningful Vision founder Maria Vanifatova analyses the latest trends in the quick service restaurant market. Propel 500 – 2026 is now available free to Premium Club subscribers. The report will be available to non-Premium Club subscribers for £595 plus VAT. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

M&B sees first-quarter like-for-likes up 4.5% following ‘very strong’ festive trading with record-breaking Christmas Day: Mitchells & Butlers (M&B), the All Bar One, Toby Carvery and Harvester operator, has reported “very strong” trading over the festive season, including a record-breaking Christmas Day, increased its like-for-like sales in the 15 weeks to 10 January 2026 by 4.5% with total sales growth of 3.5% versus the prior year. During this period, food like-for-like sales increased 5.1%, with drink sales up 3.8%. For the seven weeks to 10 January 2026, like-for-like sales were up 5.2%, with food like-for-like sales up 5.6% and drinks up 4.7%. For the eight weeks to 22 November 2025, like-for-like sales were up 3.8%, with food like-for-like sales up 4.6% and drink up 2.8%. The company stated: “The business traded very strongly across the festive season with like-for-like growth of 7.7% over the core three-week period, supported by volume growth, and particularly over the five key festive days, which generated combined like-for-like sales growth of 10.5%. Through the first quarter like-for-like sales have strengthened across the brand portfolio, growing to 4.5%, and remaining well ahead of the market. We continue to focus on investment in the estate, and in the year to date we have already completed 51 conversions and remodels. We remain encouraged by returns being generated. Sales growth strengthened through the first quarter, and we remain confident in our ability to manage the circa £130m of year-on-year cost headwinds we expect to face this financial year, driven primarily by increased labour costs and food cost inflation.” Chief executive Phil Urban said: “We are pleased to report another exceptionally strong festive trading period, marked by numerous record-breaking performances across our brand portfolio and continued market outperformance in every segment. Sales growth on key festive dates was particularly strong, with Christmas Day setting a new all-time record for the highest sales day, surpassing last year’s benchmark. Our focus remains on tackling the significant cost headwinds faced by the industry this financial year through the effective execution of our Ignite programme and our successful capital investment programme, driving both cost efficiencies and increased sales. We remain well positioned to further grow market share in the year ahead by leveraging the strength of our diverse portfolio of established brands and enviable estate locations.”

 

Fuller’s reports like-for-like sales up 5.3% year to date with festive trading increasing 8.2%: Fuller’s has reported like-for-like sales for the 41 weeks to 10 January 2026 grew 5.3% as it maintained its growth momentum. Like-for-like sales for the five-week Christmas and new year period were “outstanding”, up 8.2% against the same period last year. The company said it expected to complete the share buyback programme of one million “A” shares within the coming days, and the board has now approved a further buyback programme of up to an additional one million “A” shares, which will commence when the current programme has completed. Chief executive Simon Emeny said: “I am delighted we have maintained our strong growth momentum – in both sales and profitability – and this has been further enhanced with an excellent Christmas trading period. In addition to this outstanding operational performance, we continue to effectively deliver on our capital allocation framework with the ongoing share buyback programme and through our extensive programme of capital investment, with a number of exciting investment schemes scheduled for the final quarter of this financial year. Finally, I want to recognise that our success, as ever, is down to the amazing team of people that work for Fuller’s across our pubs, hotels and support centre. They have gone all out to deliver a fantastic Christmas for our customers – and I’d like to publicly thank them for their continued hard work and dedication.”

Soho House secures $200m alternative funding to complete $2.7bn take-private deal: Soho House shares rose after the company said it had entered into a new funding commitment agreement that will allow it to close a deal to go private – after its previous funding fell through. Shares climbed 12.8% to $8.93 in after-hours trading yesterday (Wednesday, 12 January). Shares were down 10.5% over the past three months. Soho House said it had made multiple agreements to secure about $200m in alternative commitments. The commitments will allow for the company to close a deal announced in August for a group of investors led by MCR Hotels to acquire the business. The proposed transaction has an implied enterprise value of $2.7bn, including debt, and would take Soho House private. Earlier this month, MCR, which is one of the biggest hotel owners in the US, said it couldn’t fully fund its $200m equity commitment to acquire Soho House. Morse Ventures, an entity owned by MCR Investors chief executive Tyler Morse, is providing a $50m equity commitment as part of the new deal. MCR also said it will commit $50m in equity under its original commitment. Soho House also amended and restated its debt commitment letter, which commits to increasing the aggregate size of its senior unsecured notes facility from $150m to $220m. As part of that change, Apollo Capital Management agreed to reduce its existing $50m commitment to $30m.

Marston’s US activist calls time on pub group’s board: A US activist investor is pushing for the removal of Marston’s five non-executive board members, accusing the UK pub group’s board of a “persistent refusal to act in shareholders’ best interests”. Bradley Radoff, whose investment firm Fondren is based in Houston, said in an open letter this week that Marston’s leadership had shown “indifference” to his calls last year to initiate a share buyback or dividend programme, reports the FT. Marston’s has 1,300 sites across Britain. Shares in the company have climbed almost 60% in the past year, reaching their highest price since 2022, but remain well below pre-pandemic levels. The company last paid a dividend in January 2020. Radoff said that together with affiliates, he held an approximately 3% stake in Marston’s. He said he would vote against the re-election of the company’s non-executive directors at its upcoming shareholder meeting, scheduled for the end of January. They include the former chief executive of Merlin Entertainments, Sir Nick Varney, and Marston’s senior independent director, Octavia Morley. “If board members are congratulating themselves for the recent increase in the company’s share price, the embarrassing reality is that this recent outperformance is based off a crashed price,” Radoff wrote in his letter. Marston’s said in November it was committed to restarting shareholder returns through dividends or share buybacks once its leverage ratio drops below 4.0. It fell from 5.2 to 4.6 in the last financial year. In his letter, Radoff accused Marston’s chair Ken Lever of being “strongly influenced” by his relationship with investment management firm Aberforth Partners, the pub company’s largest shareholder. He wrote: “I believe that Aberforth does not support a buyback, which helps to explain why the company has resisted doing one.” Aberforth Partners declined to comment. Marston’s said: “We continuously engage with our shareholders and always welcome their views on capital allocation.” In a November update to shareholders, Marston’s said like-for-like sales were up 1.6% year-on-year in 2025. Chief executive Justin Platt said at the time that Marston’s had delivered “significant profit growth” and was “very focused on being a high margin, highly cash-generative, local pub company”.

Gym Group begins £10m share buyback programme: Gym Group has begun a £10m share buyback programme. The company said it had entered into an irrevocable agreement with Peel Hunt to undertake the programme on the company’s behalf. Gym Group stated: “The maximum number of ordinary shares that may be acquired under the programme prior to the 2026 annual general meeting (AGM) as authorised by shareholders at the company’s 2025 AGM on 8 May 2025 is 17,930,710 ordinary shares.” Earlier this week, Gym Group is set to accelerate growth with 75 new sites over the next three years as the group said it expects to deliver full year results slightly above the top end of current analysts’ forecasts. Revenue for the year ended 31 December 2025 increased 8% to £244.9m (2024: £226.3m) with like-for-like revenue growth of 3%. Average members grew 4% to 945,000 (2024: 906,000), and average revenue per member per month was up 4% to £21.60 (2024: £20.81). The group closed the year with 923,000 members compared with 891,000 at 31 December 2024, an increase of 4%. Gym Group opened 16 new sites in the year, taking the total to 260.