Protect the Powerless by Ann Elliott

16th March 2018

Protect the powerless by Ann Elliott

It is dispiriting and disappointing to read about CVAs and site closures in our sector. I feel sorry for those team members who are losing their jobs and having to find new ones with everything that entails.

I feel for the general managers and BDMs who may have just taken their first step on the managerial ladder and are now worrying about where, and what, they do next. It’s not easy for those who are left either – are they next in line? Morale suffers and it becomes much harder to recruit great people. It’s a vicious circle.

I also feel for those who launched those brands with optimism, positivity and enthusiasm. It’s an amazing feeling to start a brand and see it fly. To see sales climb week-on-week, to see consumers and team members really happy, and to feel all that hard work and determination has paid off is simply brilliant. It’s what we all live for so it’s hard if it all comes crashing down.

The taste-makers redrawing the food and drink Landscape

9th March 2018

The taste-makers redrawing the food and drink landscape by Glynn Davis

Prezzo, Chimichanga, Jamie’s Italian, Square Pie, and Byron are among the growing number of restaurant brands that are either ceasing trading or the shutters are being pulled down on many of their outlets. This is proof if it were needed this is an increasingly tough environment for foodservice businesses to operate and nobody in their right mind would be on the expansion trail at this point in the cycle.

But along with the can’t-put-a-foot-wrong wizards at JKS (Gymkhana, Trishna, Hoppers etc), there are a number of other people very aggressively growing their businesses – within the food halls category. For every restaurant brand that ceases trading it feels as if it is being replaced by a new food hall. This phenomenon is predominantly concentrated in London but not exclusively, as it is spreading to other major conurbations around the country.