Restaurant closures rise as high street pressures hit hard

The number of restaurants in Britain dropped by 2.8% in the year to March 2019, according to the latest Market Growth Monitor from CGA and AlixPartners.

Music festivals offer £100m opportunity

Drinks suppliers could reap a £100 million booze bonanza this summer thanks to alcohol loving festival-goers, according to new CGA research on festivals.

Hardys launches on-trade foodies wine range

Hardys, the wine brand from Accolade Wines, is targeting food matching with its new on-trade exclusive ‘Foodies Range’.

Sunshine gives pubs and restaurant a lift

Pub and restaurants grew like-for-like sales by 3.8% last month compared to March 2018 when trade was hit by the ‘Beast from the East’, according to the Coffer Peach Business Tracker.

Vermouth and Japanese whisky among top serves in high-end London bars

Vermouth and Japanese whisky are among the most fashionable drinks in London’s top high-end bars, according to the latest CGA and DrinkUp.London's 2018 Influencers Report.

Northern restaurant and bar boom continues

The number of restaurants and bars in Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds increased by an average of 19% during the past five years, according to new research.

Restaurants continue to struggle as consumers tighten purse strings ahead of Brexit

The restaurant trade suffered another tough month in February with the mini heatwave towards the end of the month failing to move the whole market much, despite an encouraging performance from the pub trade.

UK restaurant numbers dip for first time in nine years

The number of “casual dining” restaurants has dropped for the first time in nine years as the pressures facing the sector take their toll.

GCA calls on wine and spirits industry to complete supplier survey

Christine Tacon, the Groceries Code Adjudicator, has launched her annual survey with a call to wine and spirit suppliers to “tell her the Code issues they are facing and whether the major groceries retailers are treating them fairly and lawfully”.

Festive period provides cheer for on-trade

Managed pubs and restaurants saw a 4.1% collective like-for-like sales increase across the festive season compared to the same period the prevous year. 

Think Whisky 2018: Wising up to whisky

Despite being the second biggest spirits category in the UK, accounting for 21% of sales (Nielsen/CGA, year to June 2018), big opportunities exist for whisk(e)y if it can grow engagement with women and younger adults, who currently shy away from the category.

Holiday season boosts eating-out market

Britain sees 3,000 licensed premise closures in a year

The number of licensed sites across Britain has dropped to 119,800 in the past year, with a total of 3,116 restaurants, pubs, bars and other licensed premises having been closed down.

Premium spirits worth 40% more to the on-trade at Christmas

The shift to premium spirits has happened and is here to stay, opening up a multimillion pound opportunity for the UK’s bars and restaurants this festive season.

Two restaurants closing a week, but UK dining scene shows reverse North-South divide

The number of licenced restaurant in the UK has fallen by -1.3% in the twelve months to March 2018, with the total number dining outlets also falling by 0.4%, according to the recent Market Growth Monitor report from CGA.

Data shows widening gap between average bottle price for cork and alternative closures

New data suggests there is a widening gap between the average bottle price of cork-closed wine and wine that is sealed with alternative closures. 

Premium on-trade sales growth slows

The much-touted “less but better” trend towards higher-value, lower-volume drinking is slowing in pubs and bars as punters feel the pinch, as Andrew Catchpole reports

France still best performing wine in on-trade

On-trade wine sales fell by 2% during 2013, and stayed flat in the first quarter, according to figures compiled by CGA for the WSTA market report. In the long-term, France still remains best-performing country for wine in the on-trade. It has grown 10% in the 12 months to January 25, 2014 and now holds a 27% share of total wine sales.

On-trade analysis: That was then, this is now

Matt Crompton of on-trade analyst CGA assesses the key trends within the on-trade

On-trade analysis: Spirits take the top spot in 2012 festive sales figures

CGA's Matt Crompton takes a look at how the on-trade performed over the festive season