Langton Capital – 2022-10-04 – Gregg’s, Competitive Socialising, confidence, BK UK, ROO, holidays etc.:
Gregg’s, Competitive Socialising, confidence, BK UK, ROO, holidays etc.:A DAY IN THE LIFE: I’m not sure that Smart Meters are good for your mental health. Of course, your mental wellbeing might be considered incidental. Holing it below the waterline might just be collateral damage in the mission to get people to consume less electricity but, as you watch that little meter tick up and work how much it costs you to boil a kettle, to keep the fridge on for an hour or two when there isn’t much in it and the rest, I’m not at all sure that it isn’t quite important. So much so, in fact, that I’ve decided, to give the gizmo a good talking to and throw a tea-towel over it on the basis that, as I was always told, if it’s got nothing nice to say, it should say nothing at all. And if that kind of behaviour is good enough for ostriches, which aren’t extinct and which have been around for 20 million years or so, it should be good enough for me. 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 https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=87YUG2Z5W7PSN PUBS & RESTAURANTS: Consumer finances: Consumers need to both have the inclination and the ability to spend. Confidence (see yesterday’s email) will not have been helped by the current political shenanigans. As regards the ability to spend, Moneyfacts reports that a typical two-year fixed rate that had a rate of 2.34% at the start of December was now priced at 5.75%. • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Levels of activity: S4Labour reports on what it calls a ‘shocking September for hospitality’, saying ‘hospitality growth faltered last month with sales down by nearly 7% versus the same period in 2021…’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Looking at footfall more generally, Springboard has reported that footfall in the full week to last weekend was up 3.4% on 2021 but was down 2.3% on 2019… Other news: Alcohol impact zones. Poppleston Allen reports that Liverpool City Council are consulting on whether to vary or remove the existing Late Night Levy. This consultation follows news that Nottingham City Council removed their Late Night Levy. Trends in the US. A Toast Survey in the US finds that 39% of restaurants have been tracking the price of key ingredients and 38% have changed the number of food suppliers they use in response to rising prices. Some 36% of respondents said they have increased pricing while 31% reduced the size of their menu offerings… Staff costs: It’s still competitive out there. Lidl is paying more and Curry’s is reported to have increased staff pay, this time by around 3.5%, for third time in just over a year The mini-Budget: U-turns may damage confidence. Prior to the announced reversal of the planned tax cut for people earning over £150,000 a year, foodservice analyst Peter Backman commented that, for most consumers, the tax benefits they were to receive would be dwarfed by the impact of rising interest and mortgage costs. Red tape: UK Hospitality has welcomed moves by government to cut red tape… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Company rescue reports accountants Mazars as saying that the number of construction companies in danger of collapse had risen by 54% over the previous three months… Mixed moves on the markets, both up and down. Deliveroo up 5%, Hostmore up 5%, DP Eurasia 12%. Saga down 5%, Just Eat down 7%, Carnival down 7%, Cineworld off 8% and Tortilla down 33%. COMPANY NEWS: Gregg’s has updated on Q3 trading and says it is ‘trading in line and [its] full year expectations [are] unchanged.’ The co says total sales were up 14.6% for the 13 weeks to 1 October 2022 and adds that ‘company managed shop like-for-like sales [were] up 9.7% for the 13 weeks to 1 October 2022.’ Gregg’s reports that 90 net new shops have been opened in the year-to-date (106 openings less 16 closures) and it continues to expect around 150 net shop openings in 2022. Gregg’s had 2,271 shops as at 1 October 2022. There is ‘no change in cost inflation outlook for the year’ and the ‘full year outcome [is] expected to be in line with our previous expectations.’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Competitive Socialising Ltd, which owns Swingers, has reported full year accounts to 26 December to Companies’ House saying that revenue in the year rose to £14.4m from £4.3m in the prior year. The co reports a loss before tax of £6.6m (2020: loss £3.4m) and shareholders funds have declined to minus £1.6m from a positive £4.3m in the prior year. During the year, ‘Swingers launched its first U.S. venue in Washington DC, and has performed strongly since opening. A second Swingers U.S. site opened in New York on 17th June 2022…’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Burger King UK has acquired 74 Burger Kings from its second largest franchise partner, Karali Group, increasing BKUK’s directly owned portfolio to 266 restaurants, half of its 533 strong UK store estate. BKUK plans to expand its total UK estate to over 700 restaurants by 2026…. • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Deliveroo has opened its first physical store, Deliveroo Hop, near Oxford Street in London… Former Whitbread managing director Phil Birbeck has taken over from Chris Hill as CEO of RedCat Pub Company. Executive chairman and founder Rooney Anand said ‘Phil’s experience of building and leading strong teams, creating great customer experiences and delivering results will be important as we move into the next phase of the RedCat journey.’ Diageo has acquired Mr Black, an Australian premium cold brew coffee liqueur brand. Diageo had purchased a minority stake in Mr Black in 2015. Co-founder, Tom Baker, will remain involved with Mr Black, working alongside Diageo to build on its success. Downing has acquired The Pub People Group from its management team – Andrew Crawford and Kevin Sammons – and merged it with its existing investment in Autumn Pubs Ltd. Pub People’s estate of high-quality food and drink pubs is based in and around Nottingham, Derby, Chesterfield, Sheffield, and Lincoln. Per MA, Skinner’s Brewery has entered into administration, saying ‘Our strong hope is that a buyer can be found and that the brewery in some form will continue to be part of life in Cornwall for many years to come.’ Coca-Cola’s partnership with Molson Coors is set to launch a range of Topo Chico canned cocktails in 2023, following a line of hard seltzers launched last year. Tortilla shares fell by 33% yesterday as the group reported rising sales but increased margin pressure on the back of multiple rising costs. HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL: EasyJet boss Johan Lundgren warns that more airlines are set to collapse as the winter low season takes its toll… Norwegian Cruise Line is to remove all Covid-19 testing, mask and vaccination requirements from today. OTHER LEISURE: Tesla reports that it delivered a record 343,830 vehicles in Q3. However, the amount was still short of Wall Street forecasts, which ranged between 358,000-371,000 vehicles. Tesla is attempting to move away from its end-of-the-quarter delivery pushes and instead prioritise a steadier approach throughout the quarter. TikTok reports that it has increased its turnover in Europe to $990m from $172m in just one year. Pre-tax losses were reported to Companies’ House to be $896mn, up over a third on the prior year. FINANCE & MARKETS: Markit has reported its UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index for September saying the month ‘saw the downturn in UK manufacturing output extend to three months, as companies cutback production in response to declining new order intakes.’ The numbers was 48.4 in September, up from 47.3 in August but below the flash estimate of 48.5… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Sterling stronger on government climb down at $1.1318 and €1.1507. Oil up at $89.29 and UK 10yr gilt yield down another 14bps at 3.95%. World markets better yesterday and London set to open up some 52pts as at 6.30am. RETAIL WITH NICK BUBB: • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out.a |
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