Langton Capital – 2022-12-05 – W/Cup, strikes, labour issues, AG Barr, holiday demand, gambling etc.:
W/Cup, strikes, labour issues, AG Barr, holiday demand, gambling etc.:A DAY IN THE LIFE: You know the kind of weekend after which you need a weekend to recover? Yes, exactly. We stayed in London for a start and visited the Winter Wonderland where the idea was to get there early, do as much as possible and make it back to civilisation east of St Paul’s in time for the football. And mission accomplished but the real wonder was that the constitution of the younger members of the Langton team seemed able to stomach beers, coffee, churros, more beer, chocolate strawberries, more coffee and beer, a bout of loud singing in a Bavarian beer hall, a death-defying kebab and then five or six extreme roller-coasters, ice-mountains, ‘sling-shots’, some sort of swinging hammer thing, Wildermaus XXL and other suicidal rides more or less in that order without suffering any obvious ill effects. Awe inspiring. And then it was back to the East End, another meal, this time in a well-known South American-themed chicken restaurant followed by the pub, another pub, Australia-Argentina and then back to Langton Central where a fridge full of beer was apparently not going to drink itself. Then bed and, the blink of an eye later, the team were getting up at 7.45am to pretty much do the whole thing again. This time without Langton Senior but after a trip to Brixton for a birthday party which, apparently, would allow them to ‘get an earlier start’. Ugh. I am not, to say the very least, looking forward to receiving my next credit card statement. Good result in Qatar last night & let’s hope we can progress past next Saturday. 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: World Cup. CGA has reported that the World Cup has lifted drink sales, finally, above the level of inflation. it says ‘World Cup matches for England and Wales triggered big uplifts for On Premise drinks sales last week’ [the week to 26 November – i.e. not including the England-Wales match] with total sales up by some 16%. Inflation is currently 11.1%… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Labour issues: Hospitality research consultancy KAM reports that 75% of operators are expecting a staff shortage in the kitchen this Christmas, while 74% are forecasting a shortfall in front-of-house staff. The majority said vacancies not being filled was significantly impacting the welfare of their current team (79%), the quality of the customer experience (79%), as well as sales and turnover (65%)…. • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Transport strikes RMT union boss Mick Lynch is hopeful that the government will make an offer that could end the planned rail strikes… The Mail on Sunday reports on a plea from Punch Pubs boss Clive Chesser that the rail unions cancel their plans for strike action ahead of Christmas… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. The RMT, the biggest rail workers union, has rejected an offer from train operators aimed at heading off strikes later this month… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Consumer discretionary income. The consumer is being squeezed by soaring rents, according to research undertaken for the Guardian. Some people are facing rent increases of up to 60%… Other news; Premiumisation slowing. IWSR analysis shows that premiumisation is showing the first signs of slowdown in the alcohol sector with the premium-and-above band growing volumes by 7% in 2022 H1 compared to 18% growth the year prior… Various reports that the number of goods actually returned after Black Friday hit new records this year. COMPANY NEWS: AG Barr has announced the ‘acquisition of Boost, an established branded drinks business, for an initial consideration of £20 million, on a debt free cash free basis.’ It adds that ‘the Acquisition is entirely funded from the Group’s strong net cash position. The business is being acquired from Boost founder Simon Gray and his wife Alison…’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Insider Media reports that the Inn Collection Group ‘is looking to significantly grow its headcount across the next 12 months’ and quotes CEO Sean Donkin as saying that 2022 has been a “relatively successful year” against a backdrop of economic uncertainty, with trade “significantly” up on the pre-Covid period of 2019… The Times reports that Brasserie Bar Co is to enter the pubs-with-rooms market as part of a plan to reach a target of 50 pubs within five years…. BrewDog has lost its ‘B Corp’ status less than two years after joining the scheme. The status offers certification of a company’s ethical commitment to the environment, community and staff. Lavazza is set to acquire French coffee roaster, distributor and services supplier MaxiCoffee for an undisclosed sum… Cracker Barrel in the US has increased its revenues by 7% in its first quarter (to 28 Octobert) but it was not able to match the pace of increase in the cost of its inputs… Tim’s China (Tim Horton’s China business) reports revenue up 68% YoY to $43m in the quarter ended 30 September, opening 46 net new stores in the period to reach 486 across the country… The Hush Collection has won a landmark court victory against its Mayfair landlord, Royal London Asset Management, after the landlord was deemed to have taken commercial advantage of Covid by terminating the operator’s option for a new lease because of a late payment during lockdown. In the US, online wine club Winc has filed for bankruptcy despite only being floated just over a year ago. Winc was bolstered by mid-pandemic growth as more and more people turned to e-commerce and at-home drinking due to Covid restrictions. In its Chapter 11 filing, the company disclosed total debts at $36.75m, while its assets are estimated to be worth $50.3m. HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL: Baggage handlers at Heathrow airport have voted to strike from 16 December, with the 72 hour industrial action impacting lights operated by 10 major airlines from Heathrow Terminals 2, 3 and 4. The Daily Mail reports that ‘holiday firms are reporting a leap in the number of sun-starved Britons hatching plans for next year…’ OTHER LEISURE: The Times reports that ‘global gambling companies have been hit with £105 million of fines this year, almost three times as much as in 2021, as regulators increasingly crack the whip…’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. FINANCE & MARKETS: CBI economic forecasts. The CBI has reported that productivity and business investment are weakening. it says that it has downgraded its forecast of economic growth for 2023 with the ‘economy expected to contract by 0.4% next year.’ It says that ‘productivity remains weak’ and says it will still be 2% below pre-pandemic trend at end-2024… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £345, multiple £595. Limited time offer: PayPal monthly £25 + VAT. Easy in, easy out. Jobs growth in the US remained strong in November with the economy adding 263k jobs and wages climbed sharply, up 5.1% in terms of average hourly pay. High wage growth has been cited recently by the Fed as a reason to suggest that interest rates may need to rise to higher levels than previously thought. John Lewis is to transform a number of supermarkets and warehouses into 1,000 rental homes. Rightmove founder Harry Hill has told The Mail on Sunday that house prices will fall by a fifth in the coming years… Sterling up at $1.234 and €1.166. Oil lower at $86.11. UK 10yr gilt yield up 4bps at 3.14%. World markets mixed to lower on Friday & London set to open down around 4pts 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. |
|
