Latest / Hospitality News Briefing / Thursday 22 October: Managed groups hit 2026 growth peak as pubs outpace inflation
Transcript
- Good morning. This is the Hospitality News Briefing, from Ops Club. Episode twenty five, Thursday the twenty second of October. Here is what the UK trade press reported this morning, collated for operators. Managed groups have just seen their strongest growth of twenty twenty six. Sales rose two point seven per cent in September, though operators are warning that a punishing cocktail of costs still threatens the bottom line. We start with the trading numbers. According to the N I Q R S M Hospitality Business Tracker, September was the best performance of the year so far. Pubs led the way with three point eight per cent growth. Restaurants also did well with a two point six per cent rise. As Propel Hospitality Info reports, total sales still sit below inflation. This means the sector hasn't seen real terms growth for eighteen months now. Propel also has the third quarter numbers for Dominos. They saw like for like sales grow two point three per cent. The group credits its new chicken and dip sub-brand and its Italiano pizzas for bringing customers back more often. Over at Bob and Berts, profits jumped to one point three million pounds. That's a big move from the twenty one thousand pounds they reported last year. Restaurant Online says the coffee chain grew revenue by over eight per cent after pausing new openings to focus on site efficiency. Four more quick updates from the morning papers. Graysons Restaurants saw revenue rise to fifty five point six million pounds. OneGym reports that its ee bit dah climbed to three point eight million pounds across fourteen sites. Both of those are in Propel. The same publication notes that losses at Tiny Rebel widened to nearly nine hundred thousand pounds after a deal fell through. Finally, Langton Capital reports that Virgin Wines moved to a one point five million pound loss despite growing its sales. Next, we look at who is buying what. BNF Hospitality has taken over the Walmer Castle in Notting Hill. The pub turns over more than four point five million pounds a year. The Caterer describes the deal as a benchmark sale for the area. Public House Group will take over the operations. Two other briefs on investment. Hospitality and Catering News reports that Parkdean Resorts will spend eleven million pounds on two of its holiday parks. And City A M says Modella Capital has pulled out of the bidding for Poundland, though they might still buy individual sites later. On to new openings. Sandwich Sandwich is opening its eighth site in Birmingham tomorrow. The Beefy Boys have secured their first Welsh site in Cardiff for next March. Both of those are from Restaurant Online. Hospitality and Catering News says Noodle and Beer has signed for a second spot in Covent Garden. Propel reports four more: Honest Greens is heading to Canary Wharf, Veeno has opened in Northallerton, Tagelo is debuting in St Johns Wood, and Pure Padel is opening a six-court club in Croydon this December. In market trends, hospitality wages have fallen for the first time in thirty months. Average weekly earnings dropped one point four per cent in August. Restaurant Online reports that vacancies are also falling. The industry is now calling for a freeze on minimum wage rises to protect junior roles. The Morning Advertiser is warning of a massive hit to business rates. September's inflation figure of three point five per cent will add one hundred and twenty nine million pounds to sector bills by April twenty twenty seven. This will happen automatically unless the Chancellor steps in next week. Two more briefs on the market. Heineken research shows Gen Z visit bars more than the national average, but seventy seven per cent of them want more than just a drink. That's from The Morning Advertiser. City A M notes that consumer confidence has dropped to a three-month low as households prepare for tax rises. Finally, the bigger picture for operators. Greene King C F O Jonathan Fearn says the pub sector is at a tipping point. As reported by The Morning Advertiser, the group now employs twenty per cent fewer young workers than it did last year. Inflation has added four hundred million pounds to their costs since twenty nineteen. They say pubs are now left with just twelve pence profit from every pint sold. Three things to think about before you get on with the day. With hospitality wages falling for the first time in three years, are you using this equilibrium to lock in talent, or are you still being priced out of the junior roles that fuel your pipeline? September's three point five per cent inflation figure has just baked in a one hundred and twenty nine million pound rates hike for twenty twenty seven. Have you modelled the impact of this on your site-level ee bit dah if the Chancellor doesn't blink next week? If seventy seven per cent of Gen Z now expect your bar to offer more than drinks, what specific non-liquid reason did you give them to visit your sites this week? The full rundown is at ops dash club dot com, where every story links back to the publication that reported it. Today's pulled from Propel Hospitality Info, Restaurant Online, Langton Capital, The Caterer, Hospitality and Catering News, City AM, The Morning Advertiser and Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport - a signpost to their reporting, not a replacement for it. Scripted and read by AI and published without a human check, so check the original before you act on anything. For longer conversations with the people running the sector, find the Hospitality Ops Club podcast. That is your briefing. Have a great day.