Roxxoff defiant

Owners of the controversial "Viagra pop" Roxxoff have ignored Portman Group warnings and gone ahead with the UK launch of the brand. The 5.4% abv vodka-based drink will now be rolled out into other parts of the country following last weekend's launch at the Stamford club in Blackfriars, south London. Roxxoff partner Chris Williams revealed plans were already well advanced for a launch in Manchester in mid-August followed by a north-east launch later in the month. "While our main energies in promoting Roxxoff continue to target the foreign market, we are determined to see it succeed in the UK." £5m hotels deal London Inn Group, the 350-outlet pub company based in Maidstone, Kent, has bought the rights to the Swallow hotel brand from Whitbread in a £5m deal. The company's hotel subsidiary, Maycastle, will now change its name to Swallow Hotels Ltd and take on the running of 13 Swallow hotels from Glasgow to Harlow. The hotels themselves have been sold to the Reit group for a total of £52m in cash. They were part of a larger estate of 38 Swallow hotels owned by the former Vaux brewery in Sunderland and acquired by Whitbread in January 2000. Portman initiative The Portman Group has been working in partnership with FPA, formerly the Family Planning Association, to highlight the issues surrounding excessive drinking and sexual performance following the success of the Portman Group's summer campaign, "Respect Alcohol, Respect Yourself", which was supported by FPA. The Portman Group is now assisting FPA in promoting Sexual Health Week between 4 and 10 August. The Portman Group is providing over 5,000 posters, which graphically illustrate some of the downsides of excessive drinking as it relates to sexual performance. The poster is affectionately known as "Mr Floppy". Springwood plan Springwood Leisure is spending £1m refitting the former Madison and McClusky's site in Nottingham. The company is converting the site into a 1,200 capacity venue club called Mode, which is due to open in September. The site, which will open until 3am seven nights a week, features a lounge bar to accommodate 300, a main dance area, as well as a relaxation room. Springwood had a licence grant overturned for a Zanzibar in the Odeon Cinema in Angel Row, Nottingham, earlier in the year after objections by police.