Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity within the UK’s food and beverage sector increased by almost 30% in 2024, data from corporate finance advisory firm Oghma Partners revealed earlier this year.
The first half of 2025 saw some big deals take place, with pubs dominating M&A activity in the first half of the year, particularly leasehold sites, according to Christie & Co.
February
In February Keystone Brewing Group acquired the entire range of beer brands of North Brewing Co.
Keystone, previously known as Breal Group, took ownership of the Leeds-based brands from Vertical Drinks and retained its leader Steve Holt in the role of a ‘special adviser’.
Following the acquisition Keystone said it planned to grow distribution of North Brewing Co’s beers nationally and internationally.
It followed the businesses procurement of Magic Rock and Fourpure craft beer brands, which were both based at the Magic Rock site in Huddersfield.
Also in February this year, Fortress Investment Group announced it had completed on a deal to acquire Loungers for £354.4m, after the procurement was first announced in January.
Loungers chairman Alex Reilley said the acquisition marked the start of a “new chapter for Loungers” as a privately held company with a new ownership structure and new partners in Fortress, which also owns Punch Pubs.
Following the news, the all-day bar-restaurant-café operator unveiled a new retro-inspired look for its Cosy Club brand and opened the 250th site within its Lounge arm.
In addition, Fortress secured £30m in funding from OakNorth Bank to support its acquisition of Loungers.
March
Moving to March, Northamptonshire-based firm McManus Pubs expanded its portfolio with the acquisition of the Montagu Arms in Barnwell for a six-figure sum, adding to its estate of some 22 venues.
April
In April, Oxfordshire-based pubco Brakspear announced it had expanded its managed division, Honeycomb Houses, with the procurement of two new pubs in the Cotswolds.
Punch Pubs also shared it had taken on four sites from Leicester-based business Everards.
The Old Kings Head in Long Buckby, the Paget in Loughborough, the Cricketers in Leicester and the Dog & Gun in Whetstone joined Punch’s leased and tenanted estate.
Regarding the investment, Punch said the deal supported its ambition to grow its estate through quality acquisitions.
A busy month for M&A activity in the hospitality sector, specialist wine retailer, Majestic, also completed its acquisition of premium wines and spirits supplier, Enotria&Coe in April.
The acquisition, part of Majestic’s strategy to expand in the on-trade, included all of Enotria&Coe’s 300 staff.
It also included its fleet of delivery vehicles and existing inventory, as well as the leases on its bonded warehouse and offices in Park Royal, and the Great Wine Co store in Bath.
Following the deal, Majestic said its on-trade specialist arm, Majestic Commercial, and Enotria&Coe would continue to operate as stand-alone businesses.
May
Earlier this year, RedCat Pub Company announced it was in talks to procure the Venture Hotels portfolio from founder Rooney Anand’s former company Greene King for £90m.
It was reported that RedCat, which was founded by Anand during the pandemic, was looking to take on some 39 sites as part of the package, doubling the size of its operation.
However, the deal was eventually taken off the table and Greene King opted to keep the division.
Also in May, the Restaurant Group (TRG) announced it had purchased 10 freehold pubs from Oakman Group.
The deal saw the firm’s pub arm, the Brunning & Price estate, grow from 79 to 89 pubs.
TRG CEO Andy Horby said: “Expanding our pub estate is a major strategic priority for us and we are delighted to have this opportunity to add 10 high quality freehold pubs to our portfolio.
“We are confident the Brunning & Price team, under Mary Willcock’s leadership, will provide an excellent home for the hard-working teams from Oakman.”
Meanwhile, Market Drayton-based brewery Joule’s procured a new pub on Gas Street in Birmingham, taking its total number of sites in the city to three.
Joule’s purchased the freehold of the Waterside Tap, which has previously been leased to Bistro Pierre, from Robert Beacham and John Whitehead.
The pub operator and brewer said it would take some time to get to know the building, the area and the people and planned to restore to site to reopen it as a Joule’s Taphouse.
June
In June, RedCat Hospitality announced it had procured the Warwick Arms Hotel in Warwick as part of its Coaching Inn Group hotel division.
The former coaching inn is a 40-room property situated close to Warwick Castle. The purchase marked the group’s first acquisition since August 2022.
No financial information on the deal was disclosed, but RedCat said the acquisition and refurbishment were part of a broader capital investment programme underway across its business.
July
July saw Stonegate purchase the remaining stake in Frontier Pubs, its joint venture with Pioneer Hospitality.
Chaired by Dame Karen Jones, the joint venture was set up in 2016 with Enterprise Inns (EI Group), which was later acquired by Stonegate in 2019.
Frontier Pubs currently operates 15 sites across London, offering craft beer and sport entertainment as well as its Roman-style pizza offer Flatboys Pizza.
The 15 pubs joined Stonegate’s Pub Partners leased & tenanted division.
Meanwhile Upham Inns, the south of England pub and accommodation group, purchased 14 pubs from Oakman Inns, doubling the size of its estate to 28 in July.
The pub with rooms operator, which was founded in Hampshire, said the purchase would extend its estate into the Midlands and south-east beyond its core heartland. No financial details of the deal were disclosed.
Elsewhere, Brunning & Price returned to the acquisition trail, adding the Jolly Farmer in Blacknest, Hampshire, to its 89-strong estate.
