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.
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.
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.
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.