Propel Newsletter Archive Page

Exclusive – Giggling Squid reports record restaurant turnover of £77m and ‘significant Ebitda increase’ to £9.2m, set to refinance and looking to grow brand further: Giggling Squid, the Thai restaurant brand backed by the Business Growth Fund (BGF), has reported record restaurant turnover of £77m for the year to 30 March 2025 and delivered a “significant increase” in company Ebitda to £9.2m, Propel has learned. The restaurant sales of £77m compares to £76.5m in the year to 31 March 2024, when group turnover was £78.6m (including £2.1m in non-restaurant sales). The company’s banking facility with Barclays is due to mature in June 2026 and refinancing discussions are underway, and the business expects to complete a refinance ahead of this date. The group said it remains well funded, with continued support from Barclays and BGF, and that it continues to target high-quality restaurant and retail locations across the UK as it looks to grow the brand further. During the year, the business opened two new restaurants, in Portsmouth and Knowle. The company also opened a new warehousing and distribution facility in Leicester, giving it “increased control over its supply chain, in addition to cost savings and opportunities for further profit growth”. In addition to a modest number of new site openings over the next 12 to 24 months, the company plans to roll out a full refurbishment programme across its estate. The company said this is to “ensure the brand remains fresh and relevant as customer expectations within the casual dining sector continue to evolve”. Chief executive Andy Laurillard said: “Customers love sharing and eating our food. Every restaurant has a kitchen team led by expert Thai chefs preparing it for them daily. Fresh Thai herbs and spices are sourced directly and imported, guaranteeing their quality. It is because of this, and because of the great service from the front of house teams, that we continue to thrive despite a challenging economic and competitive backdrop.” In December, Giggling Squid said it is to begin the remodelling of its circa 50-strong estate with the roll out of a new more premium look and feel. The business launched the new design at its site in York, featuring a new look defined by “vibrant, botanical-themed interiors”. Laurillard told Propel that the premium look more closely matches the brand’s premium food offer and will be rolled out to ten further sites over the next 12 months. Laurillard also told Propel last year that the ongoing increase in labour costs was seeing the business switch its focus to larger, more economically viable sites.

Premium Club subscribers to receive updated Multi-Site Database with 3,555 operators and 19 new companies today: Premium Club subscribers are to receive the updated Multi-Site Database today (Friday, 27 March), at 12pm. The next Propel Multi-Site Database provides details of 3,555 multi-site operators and is searchable in seven main segments. The database features 1,026 (29%) casual dining operators, 806 (23%) pub and bar operators, 633 (18%) cafe bakery operators, 500 (14%) quick service restaurant operators, 293 (8%) hotel operators, 240 (7%) experiential leisure operators and 55 (2%) fine dining operators. The database is updated each month, and this edition includes 19 new companies. The database includes new companies in the hotel sector such as Australian hotel company TFE Hotels and Liverpool aparthotel operator SevenStay Group. Premium Club subscribers also receive access to five additional databases: the New Openings Database, the 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 Hospitality. All Premium Club subscribers will be offered a 20% discount on tickets to Propel paid-for events and discounts on specialist sector reports. Operators that are Premium Club subscribers are also able to send up to four members of staff to each of our four Multi-Club Conferences for free. Premium Club subscribers receive their daily Propel Info newsletter 11 hours earlier than standard subscribers, at 7pm the evening before. They also receive videos of presentations at eight Propel conference events two weeks after they are held. This represents around 100 videos of industry insight over the course of the year. Premium Club subscribers also receive exclusive opinion columns every Friday at 5pm, which include the thoughts of Propel chief operating officer – editorial, Mark Wingett, and a host of industry leaders from across the sector. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can 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. A new Premium Unlimited Plus option, which costs £1,995 plus VAT per annum, has some amazing additional benefits including four free tickets to Propel’s paid-for conferences – Excellence in Pub & Bar (19 May), Operational Excellence (9 July) and Talent & Training (15 October) – and the opportunity to run one free sponsored message or situation vacant notice during the year on the newsletter. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

Just Eat and Pasta Evangelists under investigation from CMA: Just Eat and Pasta Evangelists are under investigation from the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA said it has launched five new multi-sector consumer law investigations in total, as part of a crackdown on fake and misleading reviews. The five businesses are being investigated to “determine whether they have infringed consumer law”. The Just Eat investigation will determine “whether Just Eat’s ratings system has inflated certain restaurants’ and grocers’ star ratings – giving consumers a potentially misleading picture of quality when choosing where to order”. The Pasta Evangelists investigation will determine “whether customers were offered discounts on future orders in exchange for leaving five-star reviews on delivery apps, without this being disclosed – meaning people may not have known how reliable or representative those ratings were”. While the CMA is investigating these five businesses, it made clear it has not reached any conclusions about whether consumer law has been broken. It will continue to engage with the companies under review “to get to the bottom of its concerns”. If the CMA finds an infringement of the law, it can require businesses to change their practices and impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover. It said how the investigations unfold will depend on the nature of the evidence. They could result in a finding of unlawful conduct, the imposition of remedies or case closures. CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said: “Fake reviews strike at the heart of consumer trust – with many of us worrying about misleading content when looking at reviews online. With household budgets under pressure, people need to know they’re getting genuine information – not reviews or star-ratings that have been manipulated to push them towards the wrong choice. We’ve given businesses the time to get things right. Now we’re deploying our new powers to tackle some of the most harmful practices head on.”

Leonardo Hotels sees turnover boost driven by ‘improving market conditions’, returns to profit following revaluations gain: Leonardo Hotels has reported a turnover boost for the year to 31 December 2024, driven by “improving market conditions”, and returned to profit. Turnover grew 2.7% to £345,460,000 from £336,544,000 in 2023. A pre-tax loss of £3,755,000 in 2024 turned into a profit of £50,123,000 following a revaluations gain of £89m (2023: £32m). No dividends were paid (2023: nil). Director Darren Guy said: “The turnover increase was driven by improving market conditions. No new hotels opened during the year. The company produced an operating profit post exceptional items of £129.2m (2023: £71.8m). This increase is driven by revaluation gains totalling £89m (2023: £32m). The net liabilities of the company improved from £165.1m at 31 December 2023 to £114.1m at 31 December 2024. This is primarily due to a one-off net fair value gain on remeasurement of certain of the company's lease liabilities. The company remains in a net liability position and will continue to be supported by the ultimate parent Fattal Holdings (1998). While the market continues to grow, cost control is a key focus to manage cashflow in the face of increasing costs. Dedicated processes to improve customer satisfaction scores have been implemented during 2024. This has resulted in a significant improvement in customer satisfaction score from 82.5% to 83.9% in the year. The directors expect to see improved results as the company grows both in terms of revenue from guests, and revenue through managing hotels. The directors are confident that taking this into consideration along with the continued tight cost controls in place, the future of the company will show increasing growth in future years.”

Maki & Ramen confirms new hand-roll concept to launch next week: Japanese restaurant concept Maki & Ramen has confirmed its new hand-roll concept, Maki Nori, at 3 Old Compton Street in London’s Soho will open on Friday, 3 April, “designed to bring quality, speed and theatre together in a Japanese dining format”. The 60-cover restaurant marks the group’s latest evolution, with a model built around made-to-order sushi, premium ingredients and an experience-led approach. At the centre of the concept is its “15-second roll” proposition, with sushi chefs slicing, rolling and presenting handrolls to order in seconds. A 20-seat sushi counter will give guests a direct view of the chefs at work, while the wider restaurant will also feature tableside service, including a roaming sushi cart. The company said Maki Nori has been created “to meet growing demand for experience-led dining that still delivers clear value” and is “designed to appeal to a broad mix of diners, from dedicated sushi enthusiasts to those looking for a more engaging introduction to Japanese food culture”. The upstairs space will feature a curated soundtrack of low-beat Japanese hip-hop. Founder Teddy Lee said: “My approach to Japanese food has always been rooted in discipline, precision and respect for ingredients, values that were shaped early in my career and deepened during my training in Tokyo. With Maki Nori, we wanted to create a concept that puts those principles into a format that feels focused, energetic and accessible: premium seafood, handrolls made to order, and an experience that lets guests see the craft up close. While Maki & Ramen introduced our broader take on Japanese comfort food, Maki Nori is much more specific in its focus, built around freshness, speed and the theatre of handroll dining in the heart of Soho.” Maki & Ramen currently operates 16 sites across the UK and has locations in Birmingham, Lakeside (Essex), London’s The O2 and Southampton in the pipeline.

North west coffee shop concept opens new flagship location for third site: North west coffee shop concept Parliament Square Coffee has opened a new flagship location for its third site. Husband-and-wife team Christopher and Hayley Commerford have opened the new 3,500 square-foot site in Cook Street, Liverpool, joining their locations in the city’s Clarence Street and Parliament Square. The new Cook Street location represents the business’ largest and most ambitious site to date, offering its speciality coffee and British-inspired brunch menu, plus a meeting room for 12 guests. A major new addition is the launch of an in-house bakery, led by city baker Jess Garland, formerly of Bakesale, who joins the team as head baker. This brings its baked goods production fully in-house for the first time, as Garland oversees a daily selection of freshly baked cakes, pastries and seasonal sandwiches – which will be available across all three Parliament Square Coffee locations. The Cook Street site also features a dedicated takeaway coffee bar. Alongside the existing brunch menu, the team has introduced a selection of classic British sandwiches, served from midday onwards. Guests are also able to enjoy a carefully curated drinks selection including British wine and lager. Hayley Commerford said: “Opening our Cook Street flagship is a huge moment for us. Being able to bake our own cakes, pastries and sandwiches really feels like the final piece of the puzzle.”

Pétanque and premium cocktails concept to launch first permanent site, in London: A new concept combining the French game of pétanque with premium cocktails will launch its first permanent site this summer, in London. Circle13, founded by Monty Quaia and Marc Sarton Du Jonchay, will launch at Helmsley Place in London Fields following its summer park pop-up series and bar takeovers in Hackney. Quiai is a former international pétanque player, while Du Jonchay, who will lead the drinks offer, cut his teeth at New York bars such as Gage & Tollner and Al Coro before returning to the UK for a spell at A Bar with Shapes for a Name. Drinks will include the Rum Negroni “Left Hand”, made with Planteray dark rum, Campari, red vermouth and chocolate bitters, while non-drinkers a can choose menu of zero-proof spirit-based mocktails. There will also be a menu “celebrating Basque culture and cuisine”. Alongside a rotating selection of pintxos including charred leek, potato crisp, aioli and crispy pork, date, spring onion, pig’s head and cider caramelised onion croquetas, Circle13’s menu will include larger bites such as a potato crisp runny tortilla bocadillo. The co-founders said: “Having bonded over pétanque, music and drinks, we are excited to finally open the doors to a space that is distinctly our own, bringing inventive and new ways to socialise and build communities to Helmsley Place. We’ll see you on the piste very soon!”