Pub hosts faced ruin after loan fraud
Two hosts faced bankruptcy and were forced to live in a friend’s spare room for three months after being caught in the clutches of a multi-million pound fraudster.
Archives for October 23, 2011
Fuller’s acquires £16m Marston’s package
Fuller’s, the London brewer and operator, has announced it is to acquire a five-strong package of pubs from rival Marston’s, in a deal worth £16m.
Giving the Americans an IPA history lesson
India Pale Ale was a beer designed to travel, and it keeps on going. First brewed in England in the 19th century for export to India and other British colonies, it has become a cult style in the United States.
Tavistock’s new gastropub franchise
Tavistock Leisure, the Sunderland-based bar, restaurant and hotel operator, has unveiled plans to rollout a chain of gastropubs and restaurants via a “franchise-style” scheme.
Hi-Spirits buoyed by turnover rise
Spirits company Hi-Spirits has posted operating profit of £168,986 in the year to 31 December 2010, with turn-over up £700,000 to £8.1m.
Pub mentors: A Lyde and kicking
Trade consultant Ali Carter gives Ben Scott, manager of the Great Lyde in Yeovil, Somerset, the benefit of her industry expertise.
Spirit tenant gets 28% rent cut
A Spirit Pub Company tenant has secured a 28% reduction in rent after threatening to take the case to arbitration.
Ban on cigarette vending machines in Wales
A Welsh Government ban on the sale of tobacco from vending machines in Wales has been approved and will come into force on 1 February 2012.
Minor variations, major grief
I am continuing to receive reports from licensees in many parts of the country about the refusal of minor variations to their premises licences.
Aston Manor reports dip in profit
Birmingham-based cider maker Aston Manor Brewery saw a slight dip in pre-tax profits in 2010, despite turnover rising 49.8% to £79.25m.
Amber expands with two new sites
Amber Taverns, the Preston-based operator of wet-led freehold pubs, has taken its estate to the 70 mark with the purchase of a further two sites in the north-east.