What the Sunday papers said - 20 January

The Sunday Times​​

Brian Stewart, executive chairman of Scottish & Newcastle, the £3.5bn brewer, is preparing to step down. Headhunters have been appointed to find a new chief executive from outside. Analysts believe a new chief executive will finally sell its pub and hotel businesses. Stewart will remain as non-executive chairman.

Marco Pierre White, the restaurateur behind Mirabelle and the Parisienne Chophouse, is buying a 50 per cent stake in Planet Hollywood, London's celebrity restaurant. The chef is already revamping the fast-food menu and plans to launch a range of branded hamburgers and ribs into supermarkets.

The Irish multimillionaire owners of the Sandy Lane Hotel in Barbados are considering a possible bid for the nearby Royal Westmoreland resort, valued at £100m. Resident home-owners at the resort include golfer Ian Woosnam, former tennis star David Lloyd and the comedian Jasper Carrot.

The Sunday Telegraph​​

Signature Restaurants' star performers such as The Ivy and the Strada pizza-chain provide hope for the company after two profit warnings in the autumn. Shares in the group (formerly known as Belgo) are recommended as a buy at 37p. A poor rating means a potentially big upside for investors (Shareholders include such shrewd City financiers as Hugh Osmond, founder of Punch).

Sunday Express​​

"The weather and foot-and-mouth failed to stop investors at Scottish brewer Belhaven, 266.5p, toasting a 50 per cent rise in shares last year," says the Sunday Express sharewatch column. "A prospective price ratio of under 10 times looks attractive for a company that has proved a consistent industry outperformer."

London's Groucho Club has turned healthy profits into sizeable losses, despite turnover rising £500,000 to more than £6m. In its annual accounts, just before it was bought by a consortium including chocolate heir Joel Cadbury and public relations guru Matthew Freud, it made a £427,000 loss against a profit of £620,000 the year before.

Weekend FT​​

Allied Domecq and Miller Brewing are to produce two ready-to-drink (RTD) alternative malt beverages based on Stolichnaya vodka and Sauza tequila. Allied comes late to a market dominated by Diageo, with Smirnoff Ice, and Bacardi, maker of Bacardi Breezer. The flavoured drinks will have an alcohol content of about five per cent. RTDs are giving beverage groups a pick-up,but it is far from clear howlong the party will last.

"Boring, safe, cheap...perfect!" was how Morgan Stanley described Whitbread last year in a research note. This assessment still holds firm - although like-for-like sales over a 44 week period rising 16.1 per cent hardly count as boring. That the group has disposed of its poorly performing restaurants makes for a safer bet and at 613.5p, the shares trade at a heavy discount to other operators in the sector.

The Independent on Sunday​​

The business section's "Punting in the City" column backs Hilton Group as a buy for the long-term. While the hotels sector see steady recovery, Hilton has, via its betting division, the potential for rapid profit growth - investors can expect healthy returns from its telephone and internet gambling division. It has reduced its exposure to the UK to below 25 per cent, by buying in to African and Middle Eastern markets.

The Observer​​

The impact of the US terrorist attacks and demand for value for money is putting pressure on restaurateurs, according to The Observer. Research by MPG reveals people "will be eating out much less over the coming months". Gordon Ramsay says business is "absolutely brilliant" at Claridge's, booked up to March, but The Observer found it could book a table for four for the next evening at Ramsey's Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea. Casualties are said to include Marco Pierre White, who will see the Oak Room close on February 15, "the gradual wind-up" of The Criterion and his withdrawal from Titanic. Groupe Chez Gerard is to close a Livebait while Gary Rhodes is shutting Rhodes & Co in Edinburgh next month. But many city centres outside the capital are booming, although The Observer suggests Conran's Zinc Bar in Birmingham has not been "entirely successful" despite the company saying it is positive and has no intentions of closing a restaurant. Cantaloupe, which opened its fourth restaurant off Oxford Street this month, believes the future is in the middle market, backed by researcher Datamonitor's belief that eating out will continue growing but "people are eating out in cheaper restaurants and eating out much less often at the top end".

The Mail on Sunday​​

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