Langton Capital – 2022-06-29 – Costs, footfall, strikes, SSP, IHG, CCL, EMAN, holiday supply & other:
Costs, footfall, strikes, SSP, IHG, CCL, EMAN, holiday supply & other:A DAY IN THE LIFE: Of course it depends which pub you go in and what you kind of beer you order but, as we’ve been buzzing around the country a little bit over the last few weeks, it’s been interesting to compare the price of a pint with the cost of a Starbucks’ or Costa latte in the same area. Because, in London it’s quite easy to pay £6.50 for a pint and perhaps just over half as much for a latte. In York, the same two products could cost around £4.00 for a pint and £3.50 for a coffee. And in Mid-Wales, we paid £3.90 for a (very decent) pint and £3.65 in for a coffee. Maybe we’re comparing premium drinks in the south with draft in the North (and in Wales) and maybe the lattes would have been cheaper away from the A-roads but, surely, a beer – which takes a while to brew and costs money to transport – deserves to cost 1.5x to 2.0x as much as a latte where you ‘just’ have to get the milk out of the fridge and throw a switch. Not that I’m advocating buying a pint at 7.30am to carry into the office but it seems as though the ratio can vary between 1.0x and 2.0x across the country. Any views? On to the news: LANGTON EMAIL: The Free Email is now written in short form. Extended versions of many stories are in the Premium Email. Reply to this email if you would like to upgrade. Prices for the Premium at time of writing are £345 for one subscription, £595 for multiple, both plus VAT. Or sign up for easy in, easy out monthly option HERE PUBS & RESTAURANTS: Costs & prices: Lynx Purchasing managing director Rachel Dobson warned operators to expect to pay a ‘premium price’ for their Christmas menus… • See premium. Reply to this email to upgrade. Petrol retailers have been accused of being slow to reflect lower prices… The Bank for International Settlements has said that the world is at a ‘tipping point’ of permanently high prices… Consumer behaviour: Lumina Intelligence has updated on its On-trade: Consumer and Operators Responses to Rising Costs survey and says that sales across hotels, pubs & restaurants should be some 2.8% higher this year than they were in 2019…. The Express reports that ‘quick-thinking owners, wanting to ‘guarantee a comfortable retirement’, were selling houses (or extending mortgages), in order to maintain spending and move ahead of a potential housing ‘crash’… WFH & footfall: Pragma Consulting says that ‘the rise in flexible working means businesses need to understand the efficiency of their office space and what their staff require from it…’ Springboard has updated on footfall saying that it was up by 19.4% on the same week in 2021 in the week to 25 June. It was up 3.5% week on week but was still down by 19.8% on the same week in 2019… Looking back a little further, to the month of May as a whole, data company Datscha says high street footfall fell 25 per cent in that month compared with April… Rail strikes: The Morning Advertiser reports that the weekend rail strikes ‘hugely affected’ hospitality sales in London and Manchester… Mick Lynch, head of the RMT union, has warned his members will not hesitate to take further strike action… Other news: Company Rescue comments on a recent report from Brightpearl that suggests more than a quarter of retailers in the UK are just four weeks away from going bust, with supply chain issues to blame… Thousands of Post Office staff are set to walk out on strike on 11 July. Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) could ‘prove a very costly failure’ without urgent review, according to MSPs. A new cross party report has warned that the chances of the DRS successfully going live on time are slim. We have before commented on the poor share price record of recent IPOs. City AM points out that the number of IPOs has fallen by around 90%. UK Hospitality says that it welcomes the publication of the first comprehensive assessment of food standards in the UK…. COMPANY NEWS: SSP has added a new fresh-to-go concept to its portfolio with the opening of Soul + Grain at London’s Victoria station… Cakebox yesterday reported numbers… Gregg’s franchisee Rontec has opened its Selby unit, marking the bakery chain’s 400th franchise shop… Keurig Dr Pepper has signed a definitive agreement to acquire non-alcoholic, ready-to-drink cocktail brand, Atypique, from Station Agro-Biotech. Salcombe Brewery has announced the launch of Atlas (ABV 4%), a new Session IPA that celebrates the South West’s seafaring heritage. Japanese brewer Sapporo has acquired California-based craft beer company Stone Brewing. HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL: Intercontinental Hotels has announced that it is to cease all operations in Russia… Staffing pressures to lead to less supply? Travel Weekly reports that independent agencies are having to review their retail networks as staffing levels mean they are struggling to maintain service levels amid strong booking volumes… The government is reportedly considering a temporary relaxation of night-flight restrictions to ease disruption at airports this summer… The Carnival Corporation CEO has claimed that it is ‘recession resilient’ thanks to pent-up demand for cruising… OTHER LEISURE: In a somewhat terse statement, Everyman Media Group reports this morning that ‘Jeremy Summerfield will no longer be joining the Board as Chief Financial Officer as previously announced on 31 March 2022…’ FINANCE & MARKETS: Accountant KPMG’s latest UK Economic Outlook report suggests that the UK could slip into recession… Sterling weaker at $1.2268 and €1.1598. Oil price higher at $116.91. UK 10yr gilt yield up 9bps at 2.39%. world markets better yesterday but fading. London set to open down around 3pts as at 6.30am. FORTHCOMING NEWS: Quiet week. Playtech AGM Thursday and Constellation Brands Q1 on the same day. RETAIL WITH NICK BUBB: • See premium. Reply to this email to upgrade. |
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