Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Hospitality cries for help

Published: 07 March, 2022

James Bayley dives into ‘quintuple shock’ looming on the horizon in April, as businesses call for more ongoing support to boost recovery.

The Drinks Trust opens applications for vocational hardship programme

Published: 22 February, 2022

The Drinks Trust has announced that applications for its new vocational programme are now officially open to applicants. For the first time in its 135-year history, the Trust has introduced an initiative to alleviate long term hardship and train and educate the next generation of drinks and hospitality industry professionals.

Harpers Sustainability Charter gathers momentum

Published: 10 February, 2022

In the short week since its launch, Harpers Sustainability Charter has attracted several high-profile companies as founding signatories, along with further interest from many quarters of the trade.

50 Top Drinks Wholesaler 2022 nominations are open

Published: 09 February, 2022

Following a change of format during the pandemic, we’re delighted to announce that Harpers' annual 50 Top Drinks Wholesaler list, celebrating the best wholesalers in the UK, is back its original form.

Sign up to our new campaign

Published: 04 February, 2022

Welcome to the unveiling of our Sustainability Charter, which forms the central pillar of an exciting new Harpers campaign. With sustainability rising back to the top of the world’s collective agenda, this initiative is designed to further galvanise the drinks trade and assist it in moving towards ever more pressing sustainable goals.

Berry Bros. & Rudd releases Christmas trading results

Published: 12 January, 2022

Berry Bros. & Rudd (BBR) has unveiled its fourth quarter financial data for 2021, showing a notable surge in online sales and a burgeoning consumer demand for sparkling wine brands.

Morgenrot chairman and founder Rudi Plath passes away

Published: 20 December, 2021

Rudi Plath, the founder of Morgenrot and well-known character in the wine and beer trade, passed away on 17 December.

Bouncing Back Q&A: David Gates, CEO, Laithwaites

Published: 13 December, 2021

Continuing our seasonal Bouncing Back Q&A series, David Gates, CEO, Laithwaites takes stock of the challenges and lessons of 2021 and considers the path ahead for the trade.

Nowhere to hide

Published: 17 November, 2021

Wine and spirits are, at their heart, agricultural products, albeit given the somewhat magical twist of fermentation or distillation. Which means that any adverse affect from climate change can and will filter through to the final product, literally under the consumer’s nose, rather than just remaining a more peripheral concern in the wider world. Producers of wine especially are increasingly aware of what was described as an “existential threat” to their livelihoods, as outlined at a recent International Wineries for Climate Action (IWCA) seminar in London.

WSTA Summit: Beale outlines path for trade recovery

Published: 15 September, 2021

In his opening address at the WSTA Industry Summit 2021, CEO Miles Beale took an imaginary look back at the past decade from 2031 to highlight the lobbying and initiatives that the industry body has planned or instigated.

Drinks giants back startup incubator scheme for black-owned FMCG brands

Published: 16 February, 2021

Pernod Ricard and Diageo have backed a new not-for-profit innovation accelerator founded to drive growth of black-owned brands within FMCG.

Christmas to bring scant cheer for trade under tougher restrictions

Published: 14 October, 2020

The UK drinks trade will have little to toast this Christmas trading period if restrictions on socialising become more onerous, with a fall in off-trade sales compounded by a further dramatic down-turn in the on-trade.

Restaurant outings rise increasingly driven by all age groups

Published: 17 September, 2020

UK consumer confidence to eat out continues to rise, with 10 million more people visiting bars and restaurants in August over June, with an additional 2.4 million also likely to venture out for the first time during the next fortnight.

Losh launches online satirical drinks magazine

Published: 14 September, 2020

Shaking aside the current gloom and doom, drinks pundit Chris Losh has launched a new website, Fake Booze, which takes a sideways look at the trade and all its shenanigans.

Economics of on-trade supply have “hit a brick wall”

Published: 10 July, 2020

The Covid-19 crisis has stripped bare the precarious economic situation of the on-trade and its supply-side, with a correction in the market necessary to improve profitability.

Harpers webinars to assess Harnessing Change and future NPD

Published: 07 July, 2020

Two webinars, ‘Harnessing the Crisis for Change’ and ‘NPD: Innovation in the time of Covid-19’, are being hosted by Harpers over the next few days, delivering insights into how the pandemic will play out as a catalyst for evolution within the trade.

Pub reopenings: a frontline view

Published: 06 July, 2020

Jo Eames, creative director and drinks buyer at Peach Pubs, gives the lowdown on the staggered reopening of venues across England’s market towns and how it’s all rolling out post 4 July.

Quarterly rent day dampens relief over 2 metre relaxation

Published: 23 June, 2020

The quarterly rent due 24 June, just a day after PM Boris Johnson relaxed the 2 metre rule while confirming 4 July reopening for hospitality, comes as a sobering reminder that the on-trade’s woes are far from over.

Drinks Trust data suggests severity of lockdown’s impact on trade

Published: 15 June, 2020

The Drinks Trust has awarded almost a third more in emergency grants during the first five months of 2020 compared with the whole of 2019, highlighting the impact of lockdown on the UK drinks trade.

Soapbox: Stephen Finch on the 2 metre barrier to trade

Published: 08 June, 2020

Asking for rational trade-offs, Vagabond’s Stephen Finch voices the on-trade’s concern over the economic impact of shut-down and the 2 metre distancing rule.