Russia sanctions, food prices, discounting, 888 Holdings & other:

A DAY IN THE LIFE:

Maybe it should have been Oscar Wilde but it was actually seventeenth century French mathematician Blaise Pascal who said ‘I’m sorry I wrote you such a long letter, I didn’t have time to write you a short one.’

And we know what he means.

Because, yesterday evening and this morning, in attempting to shorten the email somewhat – and to concentrate a bit more on what might add value – we found the time taken increased rather than decreased but, for a while, we’ll stick with it.

Anyway, it’s getting a lot lighter in the mornings and, after we lose a hour’s sleep in a couple of weeks, we’ll notice it in the evenings as well. On to the news:

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FOOD PRICES:

Wheat, fertiliser & sunflower oil prices are sharply higher: Coffee prices are lower. But good luck making bread and pasta from coffee beans.

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Cost of living crisis:

The Resolution Foundation reported yesterday that real incomes are set to fall by 4% in the next year, the biggest drop in nearly fifty years. It says that inflation could hit 8.4% in the spring.

Discounting:

M&B’s Sizzling Pub Co was yesterday offering £10 off a £30 spend on Friday and Saturday from 5pm. Sister brands Toby, Stonehouse Pizza and Harvester are offering 50% off main meals until 10 March.

Stonegate Pub Partners is offering customers a Buy One Get One Free on selected drinks, across its estate in March, which they can claim by downloading a voucher via the Great British Pubs website.

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PUBS & RESTAURANTS:

Response to Ukraine invasion:

McDonald’s Corp has said it will temporarily close its restaurants in Russia. The group, which has around 850 restaurants in the country, had been criticised for what was said to be its slow response. The company says ‘the conflict in Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis in Europe has caused unspeakable suffering to innocent people. As a system, we join the world in condemning aggression and violence and praying for peace.’

Tum Brands, which owns KFC, Pizza Hut & Taco Bell has also said it is suspending operations, initially of its KFC brand with Pizza Hut likely to follow. The group is in discussions with its master franchisee.

Starbucks says it will ‘suspend all business activity in Russia, including shipment of all Starbucks products’. The company does not operate the majority of its stores in Russia.

Other news:

KPMG has been fined £875,000 for failings in its audit of Revolution Bars. The audit regulator says the accountancy firm ‘failed to achieve their principle objective of providing reasonable assurance that the financial statements were free from material misstatement.’

Vegetarian restaurant Vertigo has closed its three sites in Manchester saying ‘the pandemic really took its toll on us, and trade is still well behind what it was pre-March 2020.’

A poll of 147 The Morning Advertiser readers found just one in four operators has received their Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grants, more than two months after councils received the funding. The grants of up to £6,000 are per site and based on the rateable value of each venue. The full grant of £6,000 is open to those with a rateable value of more than £51,000.

Per licensing solicitor Poppleston Allen, Leicester City Council has made the decision to remove its existing Cumulative Impact Policy, albeit potentially for an interim period only.

Zonal has partnered with booking channel aggregator, Mozrest to offer hospitality businesses the opportunity to boost their online bookings through Google, Facebook and Instagram. The integration between Zonal and Mozrest allows operators to convert searches to bookings.

Boparan Restaurant Group is trialling the use of two service robots at its Slim Chickens restaurant in Guildford. The robots can engage with guests, take orders and deliver dishes, both to tables and for collection, using infrared cameras, laser radars and sensors to navigate.

LEISURE TRAVEL & HOTELS:

Surcharging. A further squeeze on consumers?

Some travel firms are already issuing fuel surcharges to customers who have already booked. Tour operators are allowed to impose surcharges if they can demonstrate that their costs have risen sharply. The Package Travel Regulations 2018 say the price can be increased at the latest at least 20 days before the start of the trip.

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Derek Jones, managing director of Kuoni, tells Travel Weekly that the company is in a ‘much more positive position than we’ve been for a very long time’ after a surge in bookings for travel in the short and long-term.

Whitbread opens its largest Premier Inn hotel in Central London at Paddington, featuring 393 rooms.

Data compiled for the Business Travel Association suggests that traveller confidence has returned, with new business travel bookings rising by more than 400% in the final week in February over the same period in 2021.

Jet2 Holidays has cancelled some of its flights to Poland and has delayed the start of its 2022 Bulgaria programme from some UK airports. The company says ‘due to current circumstances, we at Jet2holidays have had to review out flying programme to Poland and Bulgaria.’

Construction analyst Glenigan has said that the boom in staycations over the last couple of years has included a revival in visitor numbers to theme parks and other family attractions which has fed through to an increase in new construction contracts.

The Exhibitionist hotel in South Kensington has been sold for £10.625m to an undisclosed buyer.

OTHER LEISURE:

888 Holdings has reported full year numbers to end-December saying that revenues rose by 15% to $980m with adjusted PBT of $81.3m, up 205% on last year. The group earned 27.3c on an adjusted basis, flat on last year. Re the current trading & outlook, 888 says it has seen ‘improved momentum since the end of 2021, with average daily revenues throughout January and February up mid-single digits relative to Q4 2021. This reflects a double-digit decline relative to the prior year period, but it is in line with the Board’s expectations given regulatory and compliance headwinds.’

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FINANCE & MARKETS:

Brokers are reported in City AM to be saying that the Bank of England will push through interest rate rises this year and it will not be deflected from doing so by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Sky reports that US president Joe Biden is considering  a US ban on Russian oil imports. As some countries have their own oil industries, this is easier for some countries to promise than others.

Sterling a shade weaker at $1.3111 and €1.2009. Oil higher at $131.06. UK 10yr gilt yield up 13bps at 1.43%. World markets lower yesterday but London set to open some 77pts higher as at 7am.

RETAIL WITH NICK BUBB:

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