Monday 16/3/15
BBC News: JD Wetherspoon aims to triple breakfast and coffee sales: The company is cutting the price of coffee and breakfast in a bid to capture a greater share of the daytime dining market. Read More
PropelInfonews.com: CBI urges government to exempt smallest business from paying business rates: The CBI has urged the government to exempt the smallest firms from paying business rates in its current review of the system. Director-General John Cridland said: “The current system of business rates is outmoded, clunky and regressive and it’s holding back the high street. That’s why we’ve been calling for a wholesale review of the system. The package of measures already announced in the Autumn Statement that will come into force from April will help ease the pressure on hard-pressed retailers. But this review provides an opportunity to go much further and we’ll be making the case for removing the smallest firms from paying business rates completely, linking rates to CPI rather than RPI and introducing more frequent valuations. This would go a long way to achieving a more competitive business rates regime that incentivises business investment and supports the high street.”
Nottingham Post: How neighbourhood pubs can be kept alive BELIEVE every headline and you’d think the licensed trade has seen Britain’s biggest commercial bloodbath since… Read More
The Guardian:The OFM 50: the 50 hottest places, people and trends in food From country gastropub to fancy Michelin restaurant, few self-respecting menus are complete without goat in some shape or form, be it slow-roast … Read More
Tuesday 17/3/15
PropelInfonews.com: JD Wetherspoon Cambridge pub set to close “for a long while” after fire: A JD Wetherspoon pub on Cambridge’s Chesterton Road, The Tivoli, is set to shut “for a long while” after a fire. A company spokesman told the Cambridge News that the fire appears to have been a gas fire that started in the kitchen, which is at the rear of the property. He added: “The top floor and roof are the worst affected areas, but the roof has burnt through and the fire brigade are stating it is currently unsafe. The ground floor and lower floor have suffered smoke damage, but otherwise remain untouched. We have been advised the pub will need a structural survey before entering.
Golf Club Management: Golf’s biggest sponsor: The game has to change Giles Morgan’s comments come after more than a decade of falling participation in the sport, which has seen membership of clubs plummet and many … Read More
PropelInfonews.com: Doubts raised over business rates review: Doubts have been raised about how helpful the government’s review of business rates will be given its “terms of reference” which make it clear it will be “fiscally neutral”, meaning the amount the Treasury generates from the tax will stay the same. The review comes as figures from PwC show the decline in town centre shops accelerated three-fold last year, with 987 net closures compared to 371 the year before. Overall closures of 5,839 were equivalent to 16 a day, with an increase in business rates said to be a key factor in shops shutting. The Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) has called for the review to introduce a more flexible system that does not penalise success.
PropelInfonews.com: Jamie Oliver website hit by virus for second time: Jamie Oliver’s website has been found to be harbouring malicious software for a second time. Two security companies have independently found evidence that hackers put malicious code on the site. Anyone visiting using a vulnerable browser risks losing login names, passwords and other data, said the security firms. A spokesman for Jamie Oliver confirmed the site had been hit and said it had now cleaned it up.
Wednesday 18/3/15
PropelInfonews.com: Horizons – multi-site operators set to take 60% market share in 2015: Multi-site foodservice companies, those with five or more outlets, are set to take almost 60% of the market this year and will continue to tighten their grip on the sector at the expense of independents, the research company Horizon has stated. In a presentation to the Propel Multi Club Conference, Peter Backman, managing director at Horizons, said: “Group operators have really taken the market by storm.” Their proportion of the total UK market has risen from just over 40% in 2002 to almost 60% in 2015, he reported, and their market share will continue to climb to around 65% by 2019.
Time Out London: Giles Coren: ‘Fine dining: the two most dread words in the business’ A restaurant in Manchester caused an almighty stink the other day when it responded to a customer complaint by shouting back – like an angry drunk … Read More
PropelInfoNews.com: Aspirational Pub Company boss praises landlord Charles Wells: Aspirational Pub Company founder Jason Keen has praised the landlord of his fifth and latest pub, the Bedford brewer and pub retailer Charles Wells. The company has re-opened a former Orchid Pub Company, the Three Compasses in Aldenham, Hertfordshire after a 3350,000 refurbishment. The freehold belongs to Charles Wells which had previously let it to Orchid. Keen said: “I’m passionate about putting local pubs back into the heart of the community as that’s what they are all about. The Three Compasses has been here since the 11th century and it had lost its way. It had become a old and unwelcoming shell, which we transformed. Charles Wells offered a huge amount of support. They share the same beliefs and values as we do in making a pub welcoming and with great food and service.”
Golf Club Management: Should a golf club remove a picture of a former captain if he is a paedophile? It might not be a question every golf club committee has to debate, but it is one … The golf club, like many in the UK, has pictures of former captains that … emailed the club’s general manager requesting that the picture be removed, … Read More
PropelInfoNews.com New concept using novel cooking method to open in Nottingham: A new restaurant concept, Oaks, is to open in Nottingham this spring, with a claimed unique way of cooking locally sourced food over wood embers. The venue, on Bromley Place, will be serving handmade sausage created to its own recipe, and chicken, steaks and burgers flavoured with homemade marinades and sauces. All the logs used for cooking on the custom-built cast iron grill will be supplied by the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, which produces the wood as a by-product of sustainable coppicing.
Thursday 19/3/15
The Economic Voice: Why businesses should ‘switch to save’ or lose out on energy bills Three-quarters of SMEs – which equates to approximately 3.9 million businesses – believe they pay too much for their utilities yet almost the same … Read More
Propelinfonews.com: Local authority calls on government to redress VAT imbalance: A local council has called on the government to “level the playing field between pubs and supermarkets by reducing the VAT that pubs pay on food and drink to that paid by supermarkets”. Members of Rushmoor Council in Hampshire, which covers the towns of Aldershot and Farnborough, voted in favour of the motion. Gareth Lyon, who tabled the motion, said: “It cannot be right that pubs should be penalised by the tax system and prevented from competing with supermarkets. Pubs play a central role in their communities and make an important economic and social contribution to our towns. As it stands supermarkets are able to cross-subsidise their drink sales, as they do not pay VAT on many food items. This means that they can sell their alcohol at far lower prices than pubs can. There’s no wonder that pubs are struggling to compete. We are one of only two countries in Europe that does not have a lower tax rate for the hospitality industry. As a result our pubs will continue to suffer and jobs and investment will be lost.” The VAT cut campaigner, Jacques Borel of VAT Club JB said: “It is great that members of Rushmoor Council voted in favour of the motion.”
Bighospitality.co.uk: Budget 2015: Mixed news for the hospitality industry
By Sophie WittsSophie Witts, 18-Mar-2015
The 2015 budget brought good news for pubs across the UK, with a reduction in duty on beer, cider and spirits, but failed to mention a cut in Tourism VAT.
http://www.bighospitality.co.uk/Business/Budget-2015-Mixed-news-for-the-hospitality-industry
Propelinfonews.com: JD Wetherspoon eyes Downham Market opening: JD Wetherspoon has exchanged on the purchase of the White Hart in Downham Market, Norfolk (population: 9,994) and has submitted a planning application to improve the building. The company’s spokesman, Eddie Gershon, said: “Wetherspoon has enjoyed great success in the region and is keen to open in Downham Market. We will await the outcome of the planning decision.”
Propelinfonews.com: Batemans win three awards in Wetherspoon’s 2015 beer festival: Batemans, the family brewer based in Lincolnshire, has received three awards at this year’s JD Wetherspoon beer festival for two unique brews; Lincolnshire Red, a premium bitter and Shongweni Durban Pale Ale, a South African strong ale.
Friday 20/3/15
Golf Club Management: These golf clubs are doing amazing work to increase the numbers of disabled golfers Jamie Blair, England Golf disability manager, said: “We believe that this framework emphasises the approach we are already taking with golf clubs ….. Read More
Golf Club Management: V&A raises millions to buy Cardinal Wolsey angels from golf club A Northamptonshire golf club is in line for a windfall after the V&A revealed its campaign to raise £5 million to buy sculpted angels that were designed … Read More