CLH Digital - Issue #7

ISSUE 7

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Sunniest April On Record Adds to Lockdown Woes– 745 Million Pints Could Have Been Sold

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Likely best April beer sales for a decade is another lost opportunity for the pub and beer sector says British Beer & Pub Association The British Beer & Pub Association has revealed today that April 2020 could have been the best for the beer and pub trade in a decade, if it weren’t for COVID-19 and the lockdown caused by it.

The trade association, which tracks sales of beer in pubs and shops, forecasts that 35 million extra pints of beer would have been sold in April than under normal circumstances due to the unseasonal sunny weather. A total of 745 million pints sold across the month overall.

This would have made it the best April for beer sales in a decade the trade association believes, due to it being the sunniest April on record according to the

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Met Office as well as the fifth hottest. If able to, this would have meant pub goers and beer drinkers would have flocked to their local beer garden to soak up the sun.

Instead though, with pubs shut down due to COVID-19, they have been unable to take advantage of the good weather and their beer sales will be down 100%.

In normal circumstances, the good weather would have been a welcome boost to the beer and pub trade, which has struggled in recent years. Since the turn of the millennium, nearly a quarter of Britain’s pubs have closed (14,300). In the last five years alone, 4,700 pubs have closed.

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CLH Digital

Issue 7

Editor's Viewpoint

Welcome to Issue 7 of CLH Digital EDITOR

Peter Adams

Welcome to the 7th edition of CLH Digital, an “offshoot” from our normal monthly CLH News which we will be also distributing via our digital newsletter, social media and also available to read online whilst this current Covid-19 crisis continues.

I strongly suspect that in the weeks and months to come we are going to see a great deal of anger about how this lockdown has been implemented and the damage it has done to the wider economy, but in particular to the hospitality and on trade.

We will, I think, call for a day of reckoning, as businesses struggle with the financial and emotional aftermath lockdown has brought.

We have been bombarded with conflicting opinions, along with sensationalist and partisan reporting; we were due to exhibit next month at Excel in London, which as you are aware was turned into the Nightingale Hospital. It opened

with 4000 beds in April, received its first patient on April 7 and has only treated 53 more before it is due to be closed.

At the time of writing it is rumoured that Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to make an announcement on Sunday, May 10 regarding the phased restriction of lockdown.

Observers believe that restrictions will remain in place for the hospitality/on trade sector, which may see social distancing restrictions remain in place long after other industries have had them lifted. This may see pubs and restaurants reduce capacity by up to half.

Anyone who is working hospitality will tell you this will not work. It is alarmist, practically and financially unfeasible.

I suspect that the glimmer of hope that many businesses have had is that when the lockdown was implemented we would all consider ourselves to be in the same boat and we would be able to return to normal once the lockdown is over.

Removing said lockdown whilst keeping restrictions in place in hospitality will drive many businesses to the wall.

Our front page story says it all - an absolutely staggering figure of 745 million pints would have been sold in April.

The VAT on that alone is probably over £400 million, imagine what it would be if it was including the sale of spirits soft drinks and food.

If the Government is to persist in its phased lockdown of the hospitality sector then it needs to extend support. My concern, given what the British Beer and Pub Association are saying that so far, is that only 40% of eligible pubs have received Government grants they are entitled to. 10,000 of the UK’s 47,000 pubs aren’t even eligible for any Government grant. Further post lockdown support appears to be highly unlikely.

Even if this support is forthcoming, the sector needs a detailed plan of action post lockdown.

The extension of outdoor facilities for the Summer, without having to go through complicated local authority applications, plus the ability to hold festivals events again without having to go through complicated applications would be a start!

This is something I have put out to some of our contributors and hope that next week’s issue will address this in further detail.

Once again, we have some of the industry’s leading lights forward/experts to give an insight on the crisis itself but also to advise with guidance and best practice on how to merge ready to trade!

Visit our website for our “Staycation - Your Country Need You” Poster available to download. Only the hospitality sector can put some cheer back into the country, showcasing the wonderful diverse vibrant UK! www.catererlicensee.com/staycation.jpg

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Issue 7

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Sunniest April On Record Adds to Lockdown Woes– 745 Million Pints Could Have Been Sold

(...CONTINUED FROM FRONT COVER)

Since the turn of the millennium, nearly a quarter of Britain’s pubs have closed (14,300). In the last five years alone, 4,700 pubs have closed.

The current lockdown is devastating pubs and brewers more than ever and the risk of permanent closure has never been higher. Pubs were the first businesses to be ordered to shut down and they could be amongst the last businesses to re-open as lockdown restrictions are lifted. The BBPA is therefore calling on the Government to ‘fill the significant gaps in financial support’ that pubs and brewers need to help see them through the crisis.

So far, only 40% of eligible pubs have received Government grants they are entitled to. 10,000 of the UK’s 47,000 pubs aren’t even eligible

for any Government grant support. Individual tenants and lessees are experiencing great challenges with access to finance too, with only 11% having had a successful application through CBILS and 50% through their existing banking facilities.

The BBPA is therefore calling on the Government to broaden access and speed up the delivery of this financial support, to help get pubs through the lockdown.

Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said: “April should have been a brilliant and much-needed boost for our sector – as many as 35 million extra pints could have been sold compared to normal. It’s a great shame that communities have been unable to go to their local together and enjoy the sun in the beer garden for

what was the sunniest April on record. Pubs losing this additional sales opportunity adds to their woes at this present time.”

“We’re all looking forward to pubs re-opening so we can catch-up with friends, families and neighbours over a beer once we are through this crisis. The stark truth though is that unless the Government takes decisive action now to increase the financial support currently available, then pubs and breweries are at real risk of not surviving the lockdown and these pub and the jobs they support will be lost.

“For the sake of all the communities across the UK our pubs and breweries serve – and almost 1 million people employed by them – the Government cannot allow them to close. Investing in pubs and breweries now is an investment for the future when we are all through this crisis.”

Hospitality Crowdfunding Campaign Gathers Pace One of the UK’s biggest and most respected hospitality associations has thrown its weight behind a campaign that will force the insurance sector to honour business interruption policies taken out by restaurants, pubs and hotels.

The Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) is now calling on its members to support a crowdfunding campaign that has been set up specifically for the hospitality sector so that pressure can be applied on insurers refusing to pay out.

Launched by Rob Atkinson, an in-house lawyer for Black and White Hospitality which operates the Marco Pierre White group of franchised restaurants and manages a portfolio of hotels across the UK, it followed the Government’s announcement on 20 March that hotels, restaurants and leisure facilities had to close until further notice.

While many operators thought that they were covered having taken out, in good faith, insurance that would provide them with some form of income in the event of an interruption to business, many were shocked to be told that they weren’t covered by the current crisis.

With backing already from UK Hospitality, Best Western Hotels, the Vine Hotel Group plus a host of smaller independent operators, news on the additional support from the NTIA will increase further the momentum already gathered since launch.

Rob said: “To have the NTIA on board is great news and we hope that any of its members who have been flatly refused help from their insurer gets in touch and backs what

we’re trying to do.

“Many operators may assume that the first response from their insurers is the right advice, however I would strongly recommend those who have been turned down to look again and join our campaign.

“This is a campaign by the hospitality sector for the hospitality sector and by sticking together, we will be able to fight, as one, the insurers who are refusing to pay out.

“There also seems to be a growing number of ambulance chasing firms trying to jump on the bandwagon currently with promises of free advice.

“But as we all know, especially in hospitality, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Our campaign is managed by the industry and will ensure best value is obtained from legal advisors to maximise returns to policy holders. We want the only winners here to be the policy holders themselves.”

Michael Kill, CEO of the NTIA commented “The crowdfund campaign fits with how we have been helping our members to date, by coming together, showing solidarity and by managing the advice we receive from legal specialists. We have been fortunate to receive pro-bono advice from Philip Kolvin QC as well as specialist insurance providers. We recognise the need to fund legal advice now, but this must not be done at the ultimate expense of our members and policy holders. We fully support the crowdfund campaign and believe it sends out a strong message to insurers that we will not be rolled over.”

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CLH Digital

Issue 7

What Does The Future Of The Hospitality Industry Look Like Post Covid?

By Stephen Gow, general manager of The Chester Hotel Aberdeen and The Chester Residence in Edinburgh The life of a hotelier always has been one of adapting to change. Nothing stays the same for long – if it did, then the nobility would still be staying in monasteries around the country when they travelled, and we’d all still be queuing for the bathroom at the end of the hall in a hotel.

In recent years, the hospitality industry ‘disrupters’ have been in the shape of online travel agents such as booking.com and Expedia and the rise of AirBnB; it’s somewhat ironic that these disruptors are now, themselves, being ‘disrupted’.

You may think that the shutting of hotels in March was the greatest adjustment that hotels will ever have to make, but it’s the period beyond lockdown which will frame the shape of the hospitality of the future.

The sector historically thrives on challenges. In the words of T.S Elliot “If you aren't in over your head, how do you know how tall you are?”

We are all about to find out just how tall we all are.

Hoteliers across the globe are assessing how they will manage reopening – how to comply with physical distancing in the workplace. We have already begun the conversation on how to respond, re-set, restart and recover with our business community and our trade associations.

Businesses are already learning about safe working with physical distancing in place, showing how effectively they can adapt and change their business models.

Easing restrictions which will allow hotels, restaurants and bars to reopen will be subject to both statutory regulation and best practice. It’s likely this will require us to maintain two metre distancing for both our guests and team members and limiting the number of people that can access a bar, restaurant or banqueting suite at any one time.

There may well be limits on numbers attending “mass gatherings” that prevent dinners, dances, weddings, awards ceremonies and conferences taking place. The indications are that this could go on for some time, so this may affect everyone’s Christmas and New Year events and celebrations.

In terms of our hotel in Aberdeen The Chester Hotel, the large outside areas to the front of the hotel will be a bonus. Professor Van Tam, the

deputy chief medical office for England in a recent government briefing stated that it is safer to be outside because of the natural ventilation.

However, there will still be challenges for us in the delivery of food and drinks in a safe manner.

much to drink on arrival to protect staff. The atmosphere will change, wherever you go socially for the foreseeable there will be fewer tables and chairs in all bar, cafes and restaurants to observe correct social distancing.

There is little doubt we will reopen in a phased manner and this is what the public should expect when responsible businesses reopen. There will be changed to be made in all hotel departments. Our reception team will be working behind plastic screens to ensure the safety of both them and our guests.

You may find that menus will be more restrictive, with fewer dishes than normal. This is so that kitchens can ensure that the menu can be produced in a safe manner and delivered by a limited number of team members to ensure each member of staff and each guest is kept safe. We’re currently looking into how we can use the menus, drinks and wine lists on our website for guests to brows rather than handing them a printed menu and we’ll be taking orders via a handheld electronic device.

Reservations will have to be prepaid and credit card details left to be charged for any extras. For hotels using keys and key cards, these will be available for collection; pre-programmed, disinfected and placed in an envelope for guest collection. Many hotels. Like ours, will not be able to accept cash payments becoming cashless.

Guests will be asked to confirm that they have not exhibited any signs of Covid-19 in the previous 14 days, unfortunately if they have, we will not be able to accommodate them.

On arrival at reception, guests will be required to sanitise their hands and may also be temperature checked and if the temperature is above 38C, unfortunately, it’s likely that they will not be able to stay.

Hotel housekeeping standards in four-star silver rated hotels like ours have always been high. But new standards will undoubtedly apply. It could be that a new form of ‘clean certification’ is introduced as is already happening for example in Singapore. Rooms will have been thoroughly cleaned according to the standards laid out by the government for nonmedical accommodation but it’s likely that rooms will only be serviced if you are staying for more than two nights with additional towels will be placed in the rooms along with additional tea and coffee.

Social distancing means that rooming guests by accompanying them to their rooms won’t be possible. Until social distancing measures are relaxed, you may be directed you to your room, but not taken there.

Guests will be encouraged to order room service, contact-free breakfasts, with only a limited hot offering.

Reopening hotel restaurants and bars will be equally challenging. For example, on reopening, we will only offer bar food throughout the hotel and this will be by pre booking tables only, we will not be able to take walk in bookings, in order to best manage the numbers of diners at one time. Bookings will be confirmed by credit card and tables will be required back after 1.5 hours so that we can offer more people the change to dine.

As with arrival at reception, diners will be required to sanitise hands on arrival and may be temperature checked, with access being denied for readings above 38c or any obvious signs of Covid -19 symptoms.

The bar trade is well used to ensuring responsible drinking on their premises, but there will be new incarnations of this.

Individuals are likely to be refused access if we feel they have had too

There will be limits and these will be more draconian than ever before in a social situation. Guests may be limited to three alcoholic drinks or a bottle of wine between two people. This is so that we can prevent any staff being in a situation where they have to accompany any guests whose behaviour turns rowdy after a considerable volume of alcohol.

Tables will be sanitised after each use and will be allocated only on a pre booked reservation. To avoid overcrowding, it’s likely that eateries will be to accept requests for a particular table. Cutlery will be sanitised before it placed on the table and all napkins and condiments will be disposable rather than in cruets or dishes to avoid them being handled by multiple people.

The hospitality trade is also looking at ways to restricting the interaction that guests and staff have – which is anathema to an industry based on high levels of personal service. In order to reduce the amount of social interaction guests may be asked to indicate when they require service, rather than staff making regular visits to a table to see if anything further is required. In order to ensure as little contact as possible, food and drink may be delivered to a service point and guests will be asked to take their food from there to their table. As with all areas of our hotel, all of our transactions will be cashless For hotels with a significant banqueting offering, when, and how, to recommence events where up to 300 people gather in the same room is even more challenging. There’s likely to be little appetite by individuals to meet in such a group size and it’s hard to see how dinner dances could operate with social distancing on the dance floor. Its for this reason that we’ve taken the decision at the Chester Hotel to suspend all of our banqueting when the hotel initially opens.

Hospitality is a service industry – and that’s why most of us entered the sector in the first place. It’s going to be hard for us to give up – even temporarily – our usual way of working. But, it’s not just going to be down to hotel staff around the globe to make this work. If the public wants its hotels, restaurants, pubs and cafes to remain there for them in the short and long term, it’s going to be a partnership effort.

Stephen Gow is the general manager of The Chester Hotel in Aberdeen and The Chester Residence in Edinburgh. www.chester-hotel.com www.chester-residence.com.

No “Cliff-Edge” End to Furlough Scheme says Chancellor Chancellor Rishi Sunak has promised there will be no “cliffedge” cut-off to the government’s furlough scheme to support workers through the coronavirus pandemic.

The latest government figures showed that 6.3 million workers were having 80 per cent of their salaries, up to a maximum of £2500 per month, paid by the Treasury at a cost of £8 billion to the taxpayer.

According to research by the Office for National Statistics), eight in ten workers in the hospitality sector have been furloughed as a result of the coronavirus crisis. The chancellor has already extended the JRS once to the end of June, and is under pressure to do so again. Various business groups have warned of mass redundancies, including those representing the hospitality sector, unless taxpayer support continues beyond the end of June.

However, rather than bring the scheme to a sudden stop at the end of June, the Chencellor said ministers were looking at ways to wind down the scheme and ease people back into work in a “measured way”.

“To anyone anxious about this, I want to reassure that there will be no cliff-edge to the furlough scheme,” he said.

“I’m working as we speak to figure out the most effective way to wind down the scheme and ease people back into work in a measured way.

“As some scenarios have suggested, we are potentially spending as much on the furlough scheme as we do on the NHS for example.

“Clearly that is not a sustainable situation which is why, as soon as the time is right, we want to get people back to work and the economy fired up again. ”Hospitality Union founder Jonathan Downey said: “This is great news and very reassuring to hear two months ahead of the current end date. Between now and 30 June, we must start to get people back to work in safe environments. Fewer on furlough = It’s more likely the scheme can be extended for longer to those not allowed to work.”

Issue 7

Torsten Bell, chief executive of the Resolution Foundation think tank which proposed the job retention scheme, said that despite the high cost to the taxpayer, it was a price worth paying.

“The 6.3 million jobs being furloughed shows in stark terms the scale of the economic shutdown that Britain is living through,” he said.

“If this kind of volume of workers stay on the scheme for several months, the cost will run into the tens of billions of pounds. And that is a cost very much worth paying.

“Even despite mass furloughing, unemployment is still soaring, with over two million new claims for benefits coming though.

“This should remind us how badly needed the retention scheme is, but also that we are likely to be living with the legacy of high unemployment that coronavirus has given Britain, long after it has been phased out.”

Confidence is at rock bottom among the bosses of Britain’s pubs, bars and restaurants, with securing a moratorium on debt payments now their main business objective, latest research shows.

looking for a rent-free period and extended lease, 26% were looking to a deferral, with another 20% expecting part payment in negotiation with landlords.

With cashflow concerns topping their agendas, rent has become the number one specific issue, the latest CGA Business Confidence Survey confirms.

But when asked the question of what would be the best next measure the Government could introduce to support their business, 70% went for a ninemonth rent-free period to December, ahead of universal business interruption insurance (favoured by 17%) or removal of the £51,000 rateable value threshold for grants (13%).

The poll of over 120 senior executives and entrepreneurs from across the eating and drinking-out market was conducted by CGA, in association with hospitality technology specialist Fourth, during the week beginning April 20.

It found that market optimism had plummeted from a four-year high in February, when 60% of bosses were positive about future prospects to just 5% now, with 89% pessimistic. While, confidence in their own business was slightly higher, with 15% being optimistic that marked a fall from 83% in February and 31% in March. Now 69% are pessimistic about their own company’s future.

Rent payments and landlord agreements were picked out by 40% of business leaders as the greatest challenge faced currently, with a further 27% seeing them as a ‘major challenge’. Together they topped the list of business challenges, with access to loans the next big worry – with 17% seeing that as the biggest challenge and 37% a major issue. Banking relations, investor support and payments to furloughed staff were down the list.

Overall, 89% of operators now support some form of debt moratorium, with an initial nine-month period the most popular option, backed by 39%, with another 23% preferring a year-long option.

However, there were differences in the rent outcomes bosses were preparing for. While 28% were

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Although immediate survival is the top priority, many operators are tentatively developing recovery plans, but with predictions of a return to vastly different and contracted market to pre-COVID times.

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Other key findings from the survey were: • Just 27% of businesses surveyed had any sites open, either for delivery (8%), grocery and food supply to the public (4%) or for NHS or community support (14%); • Almost all businesses have furloughed nearly all staff; 83% of have furloughed over 90% and 96% over 70%; • Three quarters (76%) with furloughed staff are not topping up wages, with 18% doing so excluding tronc; • There is wide support for extending the furloughing, with a three-month extension after sectors reopen (backed by 36%) and a sector-by-sector extension dependent on opening (backed by 33%) the two most favoured options; • Exactly half (50%) of businesses back extending furloughing in three-month blocs, with 40% favouring a month-by-month approach; • The majority (81%) of operators have already started recovery planning, with 72% having done so based on various different scenarios.

Other areas researched included: • How companies are engaging with staff on furlough; • Concerns about the loss of quality workers during the crisis; • Senior team salary reductions; • Lockdown lifting and reopening scenarios; • Permanent site closures; • Consumer expectations.

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CLH Digital

Issue 7

Caterlyst Ontrade Survey Provides Hope For The Future As Businesses Innovate During Coronavirus Epidemic A recent survey of pubs, bars and restaurants by ontrade data specialists Caterlyst, shows that despite the hugely detrimental impact on profits that COVID-19 restrictions have inevitably created, many business owners remain hopeful for the future with 29% confident that their businesses can survive the outbreak and a further 29% hopeful that their business can possibly thrive after lockdown. However, the support that hospitality business have so far received from banks and insurance companies is heavily criticised.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT The survey questioned 772 mostly independent restaurateurs and publicans about the impact of COVID-19 on their business. Whilst the report paints a bleak picture currently with 96% of respondents reporting plummeting revenues and 80% shutting up shop completely due to the enforced closures of restaurants and pubs, only 17% have so far been forced to make redundancies, largely thanks to the Government’s furlough scheme of which 82% of the businesses had already taken advantage of.

RADICAL CHANGES Necessity has been the mother of invention, with over a quarter of publicans and restaurateurs making radical changes to their business

models, as they diversify and innovate to find new income streams.

14.1% of outlets questioned had introduced a take-away option since lockdown, whilst another 8.7% had taken this further by providing a local delivery service for a range of menu and beverage items. Other innovations included the opening of drive-through-style food services and even restyling pubs into village shops, stocking essential, hard to find products, to serve their local communities.

highly critical of the process with long waiting times, poor communications, a lack of response from the banks and a general reluctance to consider a loan. This has led to an overall suspicion of the banks’ motives.

These changes have been implemented to help keep their business afloat and will surely provide a much-appreciated service to their clienteles. Just under half of respondents plan to continue these new services after lockdown, demonstrating that this quick innovation has been successful and profitable for many. Lockdown has offered others the opportunity to refresh and renovate their premises. Some have taken this beyond aesthetics, revising their business plans, suppliers and staffing structures with the aim to resume business with a more profitable approach and a strong marketing strategy.

ESSENTIAL SUPPORT

Stewart Sims, CEO of Caterlyst explains: “It seems that many pubs and restaurants have just cause to be concerned about what the future holds unless their regular business can resume soon, or a more accessible package of financial support is delivered to them. In the meantime, innovation and diversification may hold the answer to keeping these businesses afloat until - and possibly even after - lockdown is lifted.”

Similarly, for the 55% that had applied for business interruption insurance, just 2.6% of respondents had achieved any success, with many again having negative comments about the process, the response and the immediate refusals.

Across the industry, there is a clear discrepancy in the support being offered by business owners’ landlords. Many respondents have asked for payment holidays, yet just one third have so far been successful.

Combined with a steep drop in income, 40% of survey respondents now fear for their future. Many of the survey respondents rely on local and national suppliers for stock and raw ingredients, and the amount of support on offer for them varies. Many local suppliers find themselves in a similar position to publicans and restaurateurs but despite this, they have been flexible in deferring payments and effective on delivery of products.

41% of survey respondents reported that their suppliers had been beneficial with their support, although 23% had received no help and some even cited instances of inflexible and uncompromising suppliers.

COMMUNITY HUBS

BANKS AND INSURANCE COMPANIES OFFER LITTLE SUPPORT FOR PUBLICANS AND RESTAURANTEURS

On a positive note, many restaurants and pubs have yet again proved to be the cornerstone of their communities, with some offering accommodation for key workers, whilst others are using their premises to make up meal packs for vulnerable people and NHS staff.

70% of businesses questioned had yet to even apply for a business interruption loan scheme (CBILS). Of those that had, respondents were

To download a copy of the free report - https://landing.foodservice.online/covid19report/

Get Smart About COVID-19 and How to Stay Afloat Right Now Workforce management platform Planday is teaming up with experts from Tenzo, YO! Sushi, Truffle Hunting, TopSource and Morso to go beyond the headlines in a new webinar to discuss ways your business can prepare for the unknown future with tangible insights you can use today.

Join this exclusive webinar, available for Institute members, from 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM BST on Wednesday 20 ay 2020 for the webinar with a Q+A session afterwards.

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Issue 7

Business Rates Revaluation Postponed

CLH Digital

The government is continuing work on the fundamental review of business rates, with the key aims of reducing the overall burden on businesses, improving the current business rates system, and considering more fundamental changes in the medium-to-long term. The call for evidence for the review will be published in the coming months.

The postponement comes on top of the government’s support package for business and workers during the economic emergency including:

A revaluation of business rates will no longer take place in 2021 to help reduce uncertainty for firms affected by the impacts of coronavirus, Communities Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP has announced.

Legislation had been introduced to bring the next revaluation forward by one year from 2022 to 2021, but following the recent economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic ministers want to ensure businesses have more certainty during this difficult time.

Communities Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP said: We have listened to businesses and their concerns about the timing of the 2021 business rates revaluation and have acted to end that uncertainty by postponing the change.

Now is the time for us to continue to focus on supporting businesses affected by the pandemic, including through our unprecedented package of almost £10 billion in business rates relief.

• businesses are set to receive a discount of almost £10 billion on their rates bills this financial year in response to coronavirus, after the business rates retail discount was increased to 100% from 50% for 2020 to 2021 • over £12 billion for local authorities to deliver grants of up to £25,000 to eligible businesses. As of 3 May, over £8.6 billion has been paid out to over 697,000 business properties • protections for UK high street shops and other companies under strain will be protected from aggressive rent collection and asked to pay what they can during the coronavirus pandemic • the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme where small and large employers will be eligible to apply for a government grant of 80% of workers’ salaries up to £2,500 a month, backdated to March 1 and available for at least 3 months. The first grants have been paid.

• a deferral of the next quarter of VAT payments for firms, until the end of June - representing a £30 billion injection into the economy • a total of £330 billion worth of government backed and guaranteed loans to support businesses

Pubs to Ring their Bells at 3pm on Friday 8th May to Mark 75th Anniversary of VE Day

Perfect for pubs looking to sell their draught beer to customers before it spoils and great for offering a refill service!

The 32oz (1.75 Pints) Amber Growler with Screw Top are now selling at £6.66 each in packs of 12 - OR with a 50% discount to beer trade for pallets of 384!

The 64oz (3.5 Pints) Clear Growler with Screw Top are now selling at £7.80 each in packs of 6 with a 50% discount to beer trade for pallets of 192!

Pubs across the nation are calling on their local communities to raise a glass on Friday to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, as part of a nationwide toast at 3pm. It comes after the British Beer & Pub Association called on its members who represent over 20,000 pubs and 90% of the beer brewed in Britain to join the celebrations virtually, in light of the national pub shutdown ordered by Government to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

At 3pm on Friday 8th May, publicans up and down the country will ring their pub bells and raise a glass in honour of war veterans, inspiring their local communities to do the same. Backed by the government (DCMS), the national toast will recognise the massive sacrifice and courage of the heroes of WWII, marking seventy five years since the end of the war.

Kicking off the toasts will be Captain Tom Moore’s local pub, The Bell in Marston Moretaine who will be celebrating the country’s much loved war veteran.

Publican Karl Clark said, “Captain Tom has become a national hero for his recent sponsored walk but we want to make sure we also recognise his achievements during WWII and raise a glass to him and his fellow veterans.”

Throughout history, pubs have always played a vital role in bringing communities together to celebrate national and cultural events of great significance, from sporting successes to royal weddings. To mark the major milestone anniversary of VE Day, pubs across the country were granted extended licensing hours and many had organised community celebrations to commemorate the occasion.

The nationwide shut down of pubs to prevent the spread of COVID-19 has severely hampered the ability for pubs to play their traditional leading role as community hubs. It’s the first time pubs have been closed on this scale since records began; even in WWI and WWII many pubs remained open, acting as a vital place for togetherness in the face of adversity.

Despite the challenges, publicans across the country are determined to show their support and enable their local communities to find other ways to commemorate VE Day. Publican Mark Dawson from The Ship in Langstone, Portsmouth is dropping bottles of beer on his neighbours’ doorsteps so they can still enjoy a toast from their driveways. Mark said, “We couldn’t let this historic day pass without acknowledgement.

Just like we clap for today’s heroes every Thursday, it’s vital we recognise the heroes of our history.

Even though our original plans aren’t possible now, this will be our way of raising a glass and saying

thank you to our veterans.”

Publican John Locke from The Two Tubs in Bury won’t be deterred by the lockdown as he plans to lead a socially-distanced toast with Old Fusilier groups outside his pub. John said, “As our pub is heavily associated with the local Lancashire Fusiliers, we feel it’s our duty to honour war veterans. While the lockdown can physically keep us apart, we can still find a safe way to honour war heroes of the past. Even our local MP James Daly will be joining the celebrations to give it a real sense of occasion.”

Thirteen Joseph Holt publicans will honour the occasion by each reading a line from the 2018 war poem `A cry for peace around the world` written

by Bruno Peek, The Pageant Master of VE Day. In addition, The Fox Inn in Blackley, The Griffin in Heald Green, The Eagle & Child in Whitefield, The Fairway Inn in Moston, The Millhouse in Warrington, The Roebuck in Urmston and The Golden Lion in Blackley will all be ringing their pub bells and raising a toast with neighbours to honour WWII heroes.

Publican Louise Cook from The Fox Inn said, “We have a few war veterans in our community who contributed to the war effort all those years ago and while the pub might be closed, we’ll be ringing our bell as loud as we can so all the locals can hear.”

Emma McClarkin, CEO, BBPA says, “This is one of the most challenging times the pub and beer industry has faced and the effects of the lockdown will be particularly stark on VE Day when so many pubs had planned patriotic celebrations for their communities.

It’s vital we come together and continue to find ways to keep that community spirit strong until pubs are in a position to safely re-open. I look forward to raising a glass to our veterans and heroes in our pubs as soon as we are open again” The British Beer & Pub Association is encouraging the whole nation to follow the lead of their local pubs and raise a pint to our heroic war veterans this Friday at 3pm.

www.hsfrenchflint.co.uk/special-offers

HS French Flint Ltd. based in London and Lincolnshire but supplying all over the U.K and abroad, still have good stock of Growlers to support Pubs, Hotels, and Farm Shops with their carry-home sales of Beer, Cider, Wines and Oils. As part of the supply chain to the food industry we remain open and able to ship our full range of Glass and Plastic Bottles, Jars, Caps Closures and Pumps.

Our showrooms have had to close but you can call us on 020 7237 1750 or visit our website at www.hsfrenchflint.co.uk

The pubs are closed, but don't let the beer go off!

HS French Flint LTD The Gallery, Springalls Wharf 25a Bermondsey Wall West London, London SE16 4TH United Kingdom

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CLH Digital

Issue 7

Hygiene Beyond A Deep Clean: Protecting The Hospitality Sector From Irreparable Damage Post-COVID-19

By Sean McLean, CEO at Key West Pest Control

What will the “new normal” look like for hospitality businesses, and how will working practices change from the prepandemic days? Many are speculating about things such as customer numbers, opening times and changes to the way in which events and special occasions can be held, but one major consideration is being somewhat overlooked: hygiene.

For weeks, if not months, restaurants, hotels, bars and the like will have been empty and unlikely cleaned for some time, making them perfect breeding grounds for a host of pests, mites and viruses. Not to instill fear, but with the rush to ‘close up’ as the lockdown was enforced, scheduled professional cleaning services will likely have been cancelled and employers may have resorted to quick fix solutions with half the effectiveness.

environments. However, there are things businesses within the hospitality sector can do to combat this.

FREQUENT CLEANING OF KEY AREAS On top of a professional clean prior to opening and during the first few weeks after, high-touch public areas and high-contact points, like lift buttons and door handles, must be disinfected frequently, while areas like conference rooms should be deep cleaned after each use.

Mats, rugs and cushions carry germs, so never shake them when cleaning - this can spread germs across areas you’ve already disinfected.

Deep cleaning should take place more regularly in general, as we all step up our efforts to protect ourselves, and those around us. One simple antibacterial mist treatment prior to opening won’t suffice. It needs to be included as part of the policy, at least in the short-term until a vaccine is developed.

Steam cleaning is advised for soft furnishings like furniture and mattresses that can’t be cleaned using disinfectants, so use or invest in these if possible.

MAKE HAND SANITISER STATIONS AVAILABLE Place hand sanitiser stations at regular points in communal areas, making sure products are 100% antibacterial. This is extremely important in restaurants and food outlets as customers are more likely to touch their face, their mouths, eyes etc, thus increasing the spread of germs.

Of course, amidst a pandemic when revenue is low or non-existent, cleaning is the last thing on some business owners’ minds. Quite rightly, the focus is on returning to work as quickly as possible in order to begin generating the much-needed revenue, but if business owners don’t put in place heightened hygiene policies prior to re-opening, then they could well be setting themselves up to be out of pocket for a long time.

Provide disinfecting hand wipes in public areas and hotel rooms to encourage customers to protect themselves.

Let’s look at it this way; people have been unable to socialise for so long that we’ll likely see a mad rush of people visiting restaurants, taking weekend breaks and visiting the pub. Aside from the germs lurking in soft-furnishings and on surfaces as a result of little or no cleaning, these people will bring with them a host of new germs just looking for a new place to call home.

Research cleaning products to ensure yours are up to the job. Certain antibacterial disinfectants are proven to be effective in killing coronavirus, so make sure you have the right tools in your kit.

Think back to the first days back at school, or the first day in a new office, what happens? Sudden exposure to a wide range of new germs that your immune system doesn’t recognise often results in you suffering with a common cold or virus. Of course, that’s not to say that schools and other environments aren’t clean, but it shows how sensitive the human body is to new environments and germs.

Putting this into context, allowing members of the public to return to any environment that is less than sparkling clean puts them at increased risk of getting ill. By ill, that doesn’t necessarily mean contracting COVID19, but that is something that should be at the top of anyone’s minds.

Yes, science has suggested that COVID-19 cannot survive for any longer than anywhere between a few hours and a few days on hard surfaces, but this still allows time for the virus to be spread between people in those

remove and wash covers frequently. When washing soft furnishings, check the label and wash at the hottest recommended temperature, then dry thoroughly.

SPECIALISED CLEANING PRODUCTS Hospital-grade disinfectant will be widely used in the hospitality industry, as will other specialised products highly effective at eradicating the virus from surfaces.

Most disinfectants should be sprayed directly onto surfaces, wiped with a clean cloth and left to dry before use. However, some work best when left for a few minutes before rinsing, so check the label to make sure you’re using your cleaning products effectively.

If you have specialist surfaces, like marble or granite, make sure you have suitable products to protect materials from damage.

CLEANING TECHNOLOGY Many hospitality businesses are investing in cutting edge technology to supercharge their post-coronavirus cleaning.

Electrostatic sprayers, for example, pump out coronavirus-busting antibacterial mists across large areas - an effective way to disinfect hotel lobbies, bars, gyms and eating areas.

SANITISING SOFT FURNISHINGS Vacuum soft furnishings with a soft brush attachment, remembering to

Fully disinfect anything you use to transport covers, towels and linens during the cleaning process, like baskets and trolleys.

FOOD HYGIENE While it’s highly unlikely coronavirus can be spread through food or food packaging, good hygiene practices are always advisable.

All of the measures below are standard, but should be ramped up postCOVID-19: Anyone handling food should observe good hand hygiene, washing hands for at least 20 seconds before and after touching food Food preparation areas, surfaces and high-contact points should be disinfected regularly Aprons and clean clothing should be worn by employees handling food Food packaging should be cleaned before use Restaurants offering a takeaway service should maintain online ordering and contactless deliveries.

Certainly, the post-pandemic world will look different. But having spent months at home, customers nationwide will undoubtedly emerge from lockdown ready to support hospitality businesses more than ever, having a newfound appreciation for the positive role cafés, bars, restaurants and hotels play in their lives.

Return their gratitude by ensuring the places they visit are regularly kept pest and germ free.

KEY WEST PEST CONTROL Key West Pest Control is a Leeds-based pest control company providing specialist pest prevention and protection programmes alongside hygiene and cleaning services within both the commercial and residential environments across the UK. For over 20 years, they have been supporting clients throughout the whole of the UK with their pest control issues, dealing with common pests such as rats, wasps, ants, fleas and many more, as well as recently offering an antibacterial mist treatment.

Their company mission statement is to serve people efficiently, on time, on budget, and to put preventative measures in place to avoid situations escalating. www.keywestpestcontrol.co.uk

75% Of Pubs Still Waiting On Loans And More Than 50% Yet To Receive Grants Issue 7

British Beer & Pub Association urges faster delivery of the Government backed loans and grants, as new research reveals pubs and brewers aren’t getting the help they’ve been promised

conducted already has also found that there is a “postcode lottery” on the delivery of grants, with the pay-out rate wildly varying between different Local Authorities.

75% of pubs and brewery businesses are still desperately waiting a decision on whether they will receive the much-needed Government backed loan they have applied for, with more than half also yet to receive the critical Government grants they are eligible for to help them through the COVID-19 crisis.

On access to the range of Government backed loans, although no member company reported being declined support by one of the available loan schemes (CFF, CBILS & CLBILS), only 25% have so far been told their application has been successful. However, of the applications made by individual pub lessees and tenants for one of the Government back loan schemes, only 11% have been successful.

The findings, from a survey by the British Beer & Pub Association of its members, shows that thousands of the UK’s pubs are being left without the financial support they have been promised to get them through the COVID-19 lockdown, leaving many under intense strain and in real jeopardy of closing.

Members of the trade association were asked if their eligible pubs had received either the £10,000 or £25,000 grant. They were also asked – if they had applied for finance – whether the application had been successful or if they were still waiting on a decision.

On grants, 58% of leased and tenanted pubs were yet to receive a £10,000 grant they were eligible for and 61% of pubs hadn’t yet received a £25,000 grant they were eligible for. Further BBPA analysis on grants

The British Beer & Pub Association is therefore urgently pressing the Government to not only speed up the delivery of finance and grants, but also to increase the number of loans and grants offered to pubs.

It has also welcomed the recent introduction of the 100% Government underwritten ‘Bounce Back Loans’ scheme, providing further support for small businesses. However, the trade association says applications from pubs for the scheme must be prioritised.

The trade association says that without support being delivered wider and faster, many pubs simply won’t survive the current lockdown, let alone any extension to it.

Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub

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Association, said:

“More than half of pubs are yet to receive the grants they are eligible for and 75% are still waiting on a decision on the Government backed loan they have applied for. Pubs and breweries have large costs to cover, so they are experiencing significant cash flow issues. How can the Government expect them to survive the COVID-19 lockdown without this vital financial support?

“If the Government doesn’t take decisive action now to both widen and speed up the delivery of grant payments and their loans, then pubs and breweries are at real risk of not surviving the lockdown and jobs will be lost across the UK. “We welcome the introduction of the ‘Bounce Back Loan’ scheme to specifically help small businesses, but ask that pub and brewery applications are prioritised and processed quickly.”

“For the sake of all the communities across the UK our pubs and breweries serve – and the 900,000 people employed by them – the Government cannot allow them to close.

“The UK’s 47,000 pubs urgently need the support they have been promised. The Government must deliver it now.”

Insurance Lifeline For Catering Businesses Struggling In Lockdown The current economic shutdown has created a critical threat for many businesses in the catering sector – bills are piling up, but the income streams to pay them have been cut off.

ty cancellation requirements usually associated with typical policies – helping catering and related businesses to be ready to reopen when the time comes.

A much-needed cashflow lifeline is now available from insurance intermediary Rerusni, with its new 15-month policies offering zero premium payments for the first 3 months, plus the option to pay via instalments from month 4 with no interest charges.

Rerusni spokesperson Paul Jeffries said: “We understand that what business operators need are fast and simple solutions that allow them to cut overheads while maintaining future viability. Balancing the requirement to keep essential insurance cover in place with no current income is a drain that caterers don’t need right now.

This insurance cash-bridge will help business owners and operators in the catering sector to stay covered and protect cashflow. Importantly, Rerusni’s tailored policies for business premises also waive the occupancy and utili-

“While the long-term economic fall-out from the current coronavirus crisis may still be unclear, switching to Rerusni is an easy step business owners and operators can take to cut overheads, shore up business resilience

at this difficult time and help businesses survive for the future.”

Rerusni (the name is a play on the spelling of insurer) has been set up by commercially minded and experienced small business owners. It arranges business insurance, including premises, contents, public and employee liability cover, as well as directors, officers and professional indemnity insurance, if needed. Rerusni is a trading name of Ensley Limited. Ensley Limited is an appointed representative of MGA Managers Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

For more information got to www.rerusni.com

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CLH Digital

Issue 7

Saving Costs In The Hospitality Industry Throughout The Pandemic Laura McLellan, Director in the Employment team at Walker Morris, discusses the impact of COVID-19 on the hospitality industry and the potential for costs savings that can see businesses in the sector through to the ‘new normal’.

It is difficult to think of another industry that will have been more heavily impacted by the coronavirus than hospitality and it is impossible to predict how long that impact will continue for. Certainly, it seems the duration is likely to be longer than for other industries. Speculation that pubs and restaurants will be the last businesses to re-open are rife.

Companies in the sector will have no choice but to begin looking at multiple areas for cost-saving.

One immediate area for consideration is managing pay roll costs and there are several options to drive reductions.

FURLOUGH Currently, this is being supported by the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and you would expect that the vast majority of staff across the hospitality industry are currently furloughed, with the Government subsidising 80% of their pay up to a cap of £2,500.

However, despite this already having been extended once to 30 June 2020, it is difficult to envisage this being extended much further and cer-

tainly not beyond when many other industries may be able to return to work. So, employers in pubs, cafes, hotels - which may still not be allowed to open – will need to look at more extreme measures to save costs.

REDUNDANCY A reduction in head count and collective redundancy is arguably the biggest way to reduce costs. If the company knows this is what is coming, it may be sensible to try and time this outcome with the end of the furlough scheme – so it needs to be looked at now.

Businesses must first consider and apply selection criteria for potential redundancies before employees elect representatives to consult on this, assuming you do not have a trade union. Depending on the numbers impacted, the consultation may require a minimum period before serving notice to those individuals selected - if there are more than 20 but less than 100 employees, consultation must last 30 days and 45 days if there are more than 100 employees.

LAYING OFF OR RE-EMPLOYING AT A LATER DATE In some instances, companies may be able to “pause” paying people if contracts contain a lay off clause, enabling employees to stop work for a time and bring them back when business picks up. Although clauses of this nature are not very common in the hospitality industry, a similar way to manage this could be to consider offering career breaks and then re-employing people at a later date. In this instance you should formalise the terms of the break and seek written consent.

REDUCING HOURS OR PAY You may be able to consider some less extreme measures to reduce costs, such as reducing hours or temporarily reducing pay, but remember; both of these constitute a fundamental change to an employee's contract and require their consent.

Be upfront with employees about needing to take costs out of the business - most will consent to the proposed measures to ensure job security. In extreme cases you may consider dismissal and re-engagement on amended terms, however, consider the pros and cons of this as it is very damaging for employee relations and has the risk of instigating unfair dismissal claims.

THE COST OF EMPLOYEE RELATIONS The ongoing "cost" of employee relations should be considered throughout this situation. People will remember this for a long time into the future - how will retained employees feel they have been treated during this time and will they look to go elsewhere?

If you get to the point of asking people to reduce their salary without reducing hours, but have furloughed others who are seeing the same reduction in pay, will this affect the attitudes of those retained? Consider how you will maintain relations with those furloughed too - they will likely feel de-valued and potentially disengaged.

Businesses are furloughing staff so that they can keep teams together, but if the business will not survive in its current structure and you think you're going to lose half your workforce, it is probably better to make redundancies sooner rather than later and minimise the impact on the rest of the team.

Leisure Consumers Under Lockdown Retreat to In-Home Entertainment UK leisure spending fell seven percentage points in the first three months of the year compared to 2019 as social distancing measures encouraged consumers indoors and seeking entertainment at home, according to Deloitte’s latest Leisure Consumer report.

The quarterly survey of more than 3,000 UK adults revealed that spending fell year-on-year across every leisure category, with the exception of in-home leisure, marking the steepest quarterly and year-onyear fall since the Deloitte Leisure Consumer survey began in Q1 2016.

STAYING HOME, STAYING SAFE The reporting period, capturing the start of the UK-wide lockdown and social distancing measures, found that consumers sought more inhome leisure activities this quarter, as entertainment venues, from bars and pubs, to gyms, museums and cinemas were gradually closed. As a result, in-home leisure saw spending increase one percentage point compared to Q1 2019. Consumers intend to increase this spend over

the next three months, with a quarter-on-quarter projected uplift of six percentage points.

percentage points), planned net spending is set to fall further by another 35 percentage points over the next three months.

Simon Oaten, partner for hospitality and leisure at Deloitte, commented: “As opportunities to spend on out-of-home activities remain restricted, the leisure consumer is in hibernation. However, consumers have found more ways to keep occupied whilst spending more time at home, be it through remote fitness classes or subscribing to more ondemand streaming services.

Oaten said: “Consumers remain cautious about discretionary spending, with many holidaymakers’ pockets already directly hit as a result of travel restrictions. Whilst summer 2020 may not see the level of travel we’d usually expect, historic trends indicate that consumers value the opportunity to travel. Experiences are likely to remain important to the leisure consumer in the long term, even if suitcases are kept in storage for the time being.”

“With lockdown and social distancing restrictions yet to lift, consumers anticipate they will spend more of their discretionary income in this way in the coming months.”

HOLIDAYS ON HOLD 35% of consumers revealed they had lost money due to the cancellation of planned holidays and events. With quarterly net spending down on both long-haul (-8 percentage points) and short-haul breaks (-10

A LOOK AHEAD Oaten concluded: “Leisure is one of the sectors most significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, posing an unprecedented financial challenge. Historically low consumer confidence means we are unlikely to see the usual uplift in leisure spending that the warmer spring months bring, and current restrictions have highlighted the value leisure consumption brings to our economy and society.

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Industry Stepping Up Plans for a Depleted Market Post-Lockdown The latest CGA Business Confidence Survey reveals that operators remain deeply pessimistic about both market prospects and the future of their own businesses, with a third (32%) of senior executives anticipating the need to permanently close pub, bar and restaurant sites.

funds needed to reopen or don’t require funding, leaving 27% who are apprehensive about financing a return. In that context, extending furloughing has wide support, with a three-month extension after sectors re-open backed by 36% and a sector-by-sector extension dependent on opening backed by 33%. Exactly half (50%) of businesses back extending furloughing in three-month blocks, with 40% favouring a month-bymonth approach.

Most businesses across Britain’s eating and drinking-out market are now actively engaged in planning for life after lockdown – although the majority of bosses are not expecting to reopen until June or July, if allowed, and then taking a phased approach.

OPERATIONAL ADAPTATION

The poll of over 120 senior executives and entrepreneurs was conducted by CGA, in association with hospitality technology specialist Fourth, during the week beginning April 20.

Adapting to operational changes forced by the continuing threat of the virus is seen as the main challenge after opening, rather than suppliers or staff. Increased hygiene measures, reduced occupancy, reduced menus and reduced hours are the most anticipated changes to business.

LIFE AFTER LOCKDOWN “This is undoubtedly the most important business leaders' survey we've delivered in a decade,” said Karl Chessell, Director of Food & Retail at CGA. “At this critical juncture, how hospitality leaders plan for the recovery will be critical to the long-term success of their businesses.”

Just 36% of leaders believe they will eventually re-open all of their sites for trading, with another third yet to decide on closures. But almost all expect to see a much-reduced market overall in the future, with somewhere between 70% and 80% of sites across pubs, bars, restaurants, latenight venues and hotels continuing to trade.

The vast majority (81%) of operators have now started recovery planning, with most considering a range of different scenarios. But, 13% said they were still waiting for more information before starting, while 5% did not currently have the capacity to plan.

Most businesses will be starting recovery from scratch, as only 27% of those surveyed had any sites open, either for delivery (8%), grocery and food supply to the public (4%) or for NHS or community support (14%).

When the poll was taken, most leaders assumed lockdown would be lifted in one to three months’ time, with 39% predicting between one and two months and another 29% between two and three.

The vast majority (96%) of bosses are expecting a phased reopening for hospitality, with half believing that will be based on a number of criteria including sector, location and type of site. Only 4% expect a mass reopening.

More importantly, 62% are planning for a phased reopening of their own estates. However, a sizeable 31% expect a full-scale reopening of their operations, but dictated by what the Government allows.

While a third of operators expect to be permanently closing a proportion of their own sites, most anticipate a much-reduced size of market overall, with late-night venues and restaurants expected to be the hardest hit and hotels most likely to survive. On average, they expected to

That also reflects in part what leaders expect to be the main longterm changes in customer behaviour, namely increased hygiene demands, lower frequency of eating and drinking out, a reluctance to visit city and town centres and a desire to support local businesses. see 69% of late-night operations, 71% of restaurant, 77% of drink-led pubs, 79% of pub restaurants and 85% of hotels to be left in business.

More optimistically, two thirds of bosses believe it will take them less than two weeks to get their sites ready to trade after lockdown is lifted, including a third (33%) who think they can do it in less than a week, while another 22% anticipate a two to four week preparation period.

James England, Senior Vice President at Fourth, said: “Operators are increasingly focusing their thoughts on reactivation. While it’s not yet clear when the lockdown will be lifted, it is apparent that the market will have a fundamentally different outlook when it reopens. Reigniting dormant supply chains and accurately forecasting demand in the volatile climate of COVID-19 will require collaboration up and down the supply chain, across technology platforms and operator to operator. At Fourth, we are determined to do our bit to help achieve this.”

FOCUS ON FRONT-LINE WORKERS Losing quality staff during lockdown is a concern for 47% of bosses, although the vast majority of companies have been engaging with furloughed teams at least weekly, and some daily, with WhatsApp and email groups being the most common mode.

Almost all businesses in the sector have furloughed nearly all staff; 83% have furloughed over 90% and 96% over 70%. Three quarters (76%) with furloughed staff are not topping up wages.

When it comes to readying staff for reopening, most bosses (63%) believe teams can be prepped and trained in less than a week, with 32% saying less than three days. Health, safety and hygiene is seen as the main area where training will be required, followed by emotional well-being, people management, and customer service.

Most (73%) operators say they are either confident in accessing the

“The size and shape of the eating and drinking out market is projected to look very different post-lockdown,” added Chessell. “The offer will inevitably change as leaders have to change their operating model to thrive once they open their doors again.”

Against these challenges, the survey found that market optimism had plummeted from a four-year high in February, when 60% of bosses were positive about future prospects to just 5% now, with 89% pessimistic.

While, confidence in their own business was slightly higher, with 15% being optimistic that marked a fall from 83% in February and 31% in March. Now 69% are pessimistic about their own company’s future.

England added: “With great swathes of workers on the job retention scheme, businesses are focused on driving engagement with their teams supporting health and well-being and retaining the best workers. Whilst the crisis has brought many challenges, a renewed focus on culture absolutely feels like one of the positives. More and more businesses are seeking ways to further engage their workforce in order to support, train and retain them.

“Social distancing and the fallout from the pandemic will demand that businesses take a fresh look at their operating models and, of course, labour productivity and increased automation. This might see the rise of the ‘host’ role, in order to oversee social distancing measures, along with likely additional bussing and cleaning activities and procedures.

Ultimately, hospitality’s post-COVID-19 complexion will look fundamentally different to the start of 2020, but we are a resilient industry that will evolve, adapt, innovate and overcome the challenges presented.”

Chessell concluded: “CGA is already working with partners across the sector, both operators and suppliers, using our range of insight capabilities to help them map out routes forward through what will be an ever evolving landscape."

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Issue 7

CLH Digital

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British Beer & Pub Association Issues New Guidelines for Retrieval of Beer Casks & Kegs New guidelines will help pubs and brewers to recover 1.9 million containers of beer from cellars

duced by HMRC to allow licensees to destroy beer in the pub once they have received instruction from a brewer.

The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) has produced new guidelines to support the industry in deciding how best to approach the safe retrieval of containers from pub cellars. The BBPA estimates that some 1.9 million containers of beer are currently left in pub cellars, following the rapid closure due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

The BBPA best practice guidance, supported by HMRC, has also been updated to reflect that a common-sense approach can be taken to verification and audit of this process and facilitating collaboration by brewers to achieve this.

Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said:

The new guidelines, which have been created by the BBPA with input from its membership outline some of the key factors brewers and pub businesses will need to consider when formulating their preferred approach to the recovery of containers from cellars; including health & safety, environmental and economic considerations.

“These latest guidelines the BBPA has produced further help all parts of our sector to decide how best to recover containers from pub cellars in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.

“The guidelines should help facilitate the monumental task of re-stocking pubs in advance of re-opening and once lockdown restrictions have been lifted.”

Where such decisions include permitting remote destruction of beer by a licensee, the guidelines are also aligned with the flexibility recently intro-

South Coast Hoteliers Publish A “COVID-19 Action Plan” A leading holiday resort has published a ‘Covid-19 Action Plan’ so it can re-open its hotels as soon as possible.

Bournemouth and the neighbouring towns of Poole and Christchurch want to be ready when lockdown restrictions are lifted.

Hoteliers also want the government to consider any trials of lockdown lifting in the tourism sector to be carried out in the Dorset conurbation.

Districts (BIDS), BCP Council and local MPs.

ment can be done remotely.

The ‘Stay Safe Code of Action’ has also drawn interest from VisitBritain, the official arm of the British Tourist Authority.

“Each hotel is different, but we want them all to sign up to the code which outlines minimum protocols and procedures.

Theo said: “Our local economy is so dependent on tourism we wanted to create a plan that will allow us to re-open the hotels, guest houses and B&Bs as soon as possible.

“We hope to prove to the government and to the holidaying public that we are ready to slowly re-open and have taken all necessary precautions.

“The objective is to reduce risk as much as we can to reassure people that we can safely open again, albeit on a reduced basis.

“While we understand that the health of the nation comes first, a time will come when rules will be relaxed, and we want visitors to know that we have been proactive in making the resort safe.

“In line with government rulings we want to clearly demonstrate that we have implemented procedures that put the safety and wellbeing of our guests, our staff and local residents at the forefront.

“The code of action includes risk-reduction protocols and best practice learned from other nations, as well as input from health professionals.

Using experience from other nations, which are beginning to open up, hoteliers and other experts have compiled a stay safe code of action that will restore confidence for visitors.

“Practical things include opening a limited number of car parking spaces, and public areas, and operating to just 50 per cent of bedroom capacity so social-distancing can be practised.

The UK’s tourism industry has been non-existent since the crisis began and now the holiday season is here it is suffering further.

“Obviously room cleaning must be extremely thorough, and rooms might be left empty for days after they have been occupied.

Hotel manager Theo Iakimov, who runs Bournemouth’s Hotel Miramar, led the move to create the plan, with the support of Rosie Radwell from neighbouring Marsham Court Hotel, and hospitality consultant Simon Scarborough.

“Signage about rules and how to correctly use hand sanitiser will have to be prominent and new training for staff should be introduced.

The BH Area Hospitality Association (BAHA) quickly adopted the project along with the backing of the town’s two Business Improvement

“Shift patterns should be organised so people are less likely to mix with each other and staff and guests will be provided with all necessary protection.

“Temperature tests for staff and guests can be introduced and pay-

“Also, if the government wants to run a trial of re-opening hotels to test the waters, hoteliers in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole areas are fully prepared and ready to welcome guests back.

Tim Seward chairman of the BH Area Hospitality Association said: “The hospitality sector is critical to the south west region, and this unified approach involving so many key stakeholders shows our commitment to helping local businesses and the regional economy get back on track.”

It is hoped that due to the severe impact on international travel that the government will put their weight behind a campaign to promote the British tourist industry.

David Bailey of the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Destination Management Board said: “If sensible measures can be put in place to ensure the safest form of hotel visits, then the staycation in holiday regions such as Dorset could be the saviour of the industry, or at least give a much welcome boost towards getting the tourism sector back on its feet.”

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CLH Digital

Issue 7

Managing Your Reputation Online Louise Watson-Dowell, Digital Account Director at Definition Agency – a full-service communications agency with a specialist food and drink division – discusses the importance of a digital profile in the current climate and how to manage your reputation with social media. (www.definitionagency.com) As many in the hospitality industry re-think their business models in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, shifting from eat-in to takeaway or delivery only, the digital profile of food and drink businesses has arguably never been more important in sustaining them.

Now more than ever, consumers are spending time online looking at food – what they can make or where to get their favourite BC (before coronavirus) treats – and ordering from local, often independent, bakeries, restaurants and delicatessens. Those businesses able to pivot their offering whilst communicating with their customers online should do well.

Social media can be a great way to showcase your offering – it can deliver speedy and measurable results and be extremely cost effective – and although it may seem daunting, investing some time in communicat-

ing with your customers via social media can pay dividends.

Think about the reasons you use social media and what content you would respond to. Being useful to your followers will build an engaged audience – share opening times for your business, the process of making complete dishes or cocktails, special deals or facts and figures related to what you do. Focus on what your customers might want to know and why they are following you to help you decide what to post.

4. TALK TO OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA USERS

There are challenges that can come with setting up and managing a social media profile too, but if you’re confident in your product and have a market for it, these shouldn’t pose a threat worth stalling for.

If you’re looking to build your business with a presence on social media, follow these top tips to get started.

1. DECIDE ON THE BEST CHANNEL You might want to show off the quality of your produce, so a visual platform like Instagram would work well, while If you have the time for more conversational exchanges with your audience, you might consider Twitter. If you want people to be able to ‘check-in’ and leave reviews or ask questions with an instant private chat function, Facebook is your goto. If you have the resource you can manage multiple platforms, but you don’t have to – think about who your audience is and the time you have to communicate with them online.

2. BE HUMAN You want to look professional online, but customers also like to know there are real people behind a business. Making your social media channels a reflection of you and your brand will help you to come across authentically. Speak in your own voice but be careful to match the tone of your content to your business.

3. MAKE YOUR CONTENT USEFUL AND ENTERTAINING

Look for other local organisations that have similar target audiences and markets to yours and talk to them – follow them and leave comments or replies on their posts and use hashtags to join ongoing conversations. Retweet and repost relevant content from others on social media and look for opportunities to feature them in your posts. You can measure your success against your follower numbers, as you will find their audience becomes your audience too.

5. DON’T BE AFRAID OF FEEDBACK How you deal with feedback is just as important in managing your reputation as getting it. If a customer isn’t satisfied with the service or product you’ve provided, don’t be tempted to respond defensively or negatively online, as this will only reflect badly on you. Try to make sure you have a procedure in place to reply and investigate poor customer feedback and communicate this with the person leaving you a negative comment or review in the same forum. Be open with them about your operations, apologise where appropriate and offer what you feel is a fair reimbursement. It’s difficult for consumers to continue to respond negatively if you make steps to diffuse the situation, and if they do, you likely wouldn’t be able to placate them no matter what you offered.

Investing time in building a presence on social media channels can be daunting, however, the potential benefits far outweigh the negatives, with platforms enabling your biggest fans and brand advocates to share your content far wider than you could on your own.

Barbados Celebrates Centenarian Cpt. Tom and Recognises NHS Heroes Barbados’ Minister of Tourism and International Transport, the Hon. Kerrie D. Symmonds, M.P., has announced that in recognition of the incredible and selfless fundraising efforts of soon-to-be centenarian, Captain Tom Moore, Barbados will be extending an invitation to host him and members of his family on a visit to the island when it is safe to travel.

In addition to this, with its close ties to the UK, in wanting to give back: Barbados will be launching an initiative to thank the UK NHS staff for their front-line dedication.

CELEBRATING CENTENARIANS With the second highest number of centenarians per capita in the world, the island is immensely proud of its senior citizens, and Barbadians regularly celebrate and honour those who reach this significant milestone on a national scale.

In continuing this tradition of recognising centenarians, Barbados is offering its congratulations to a gentleman who has become the UK’s newest hero, Captain Tom Moore. Affectionately known as ‘Captain Tom’, Moore, a WWII veteran, will be cele-

brating his 100th birthday this Thursday, 30th April.

Barbados also wants to acknowledge and commend his extraordinary efforts in raising close to £30 million for the NHS, an achievement that has surpassed his original target of £1,000 almost 30,000 times over.

Given the natural synergies and shared history between Barbados and the UK, the destination would like to invite Captain Tom and three members of his family to visit, once travel is again possible.

THANKING NHS HEROES Despite being an independent nation for almost 54 years, the island known as ‘Little England’ will play its part in thanking the brave NHS workers making sacrifices to protect and save the lives of patients in their continued fight against COVID-19.

NHS staff will be nominated by their friends and family through BarbadosCares.com, and will be given the opportunity to travel to Barbados, the number one Caribbean destination for UK travellers, with a guest. All entries will be judged by a panel to identify the twenty most inspirational stories.

Issue 7

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#GivingGoodness: Caterers & Restaurateurs Feed the Frontline with Food4Heroes Food4Heroes pools together local catering companies and restaurants to deliver high quality, nutritious free meals to hospitals, currently delivering 27,000 meals per week across the UK. Based in Yorkshire, the charity aims to create a hot meal for every single NHS worker during these challenging times.

Arla Pro, the foodservice division of the UK’s largest farmerowned dairy co-operative Arla Foods, has pledged its support to Food4Heroes with a contribution of dairy goodness: high quality dairy products including milk, cheese and butter.

Amanda Guest and John Brownhill, Founders of Food4Heroes, said: “We are so very grateful for the generous donations of milk, cheese and butter from Arla Foods, which means we can continue to provide daily

meals to the frontline NHS Staff in Yorkshire Hospitals. Thanks to the generosity of Arla and other local providers we are now able to serve 19 Hospitals nationally, and over 27,000 meals to NHS Heroes every week.”

Jonathan Dixon, Vice President for Arla Pro UK, comments: “Whilst we are delighted to be able to provide this support to key workers and vulnerable people in these difficult times, we do so knowing that the foodservice sector is facing severe challenges. At Arla Pro we are committed to supporting our customers with rebuilding their businesses in the coming months and welcoming people back through the doors of the nation’s pubs, coffee shops and restaurants when it is safe to do so.”

Catering and restaurant businesses can sign up to volunteer their services to Food4Heroes via their website:https://www.food4heroes.co.uk/volunteer.

Arla Foods has so far launched a number of charitable partnerships, in addition to its work with Food4Heroes.

Parent company to brands like Anchor®, Cravendale® and Lurpak®, Arla has already committed over 35 per cent of its milk produced at its

site in Settle, North Yorkshire, to the Government’s care packages for those needing to be shielded.

Working with Magic Breakfast, Arla will provide free milk to deliver 4.8 million breakfast bowls for vulnerable children.

Also benefiting from the support of Arla is charity FareShare, tackling hunger across the UK. Arla has increased its ongoing support for FareShare with contributions of UHT milk, cheese, yogurts and butter, providing enough dairy for 4 million slices of Lurpak® buttery toast and 1.4 million slices of pizza thanks to Arla Pro Mozzarella.

Jonathan Dixon, Vice President for Arla Pro UK, also comments: “The challenges of coronavirus are hitting the dairy industry hard with a surplus of milk now being produced on farms across the country. To ensure Arla milk isn’t wasted, where there are temporarily less foodservice outlets to sell dairy products into, we are redistributing them to where they are needed most; to those being shielded, those on the front line at our hospitals, and the children who are in need of nutritious products to help stay healthy at this time.”

Beer Sales Collapsed 40% In March, Reflecting Impact Of First Two Weeks Of Pubs Lockdown

British Beer & Pub Association highlights the immediate and devastating impact of lockdown on the nation’s pubs; Pub sales in April to be zero Pub beer sales collapsed by 40% in March 2020 compared to the same period in 2019, new figures from the British Beer & Pub Association, the leading trade association representing brewers and pubs, reveal.

The BBPA says the stark decrease shows the immediate and devastating impact that lockdown is having on the great British pub.

On Monday 16th March 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson advised members of the public to avoid the pub. By Friday 20th, he had ordered pubs to close – stopping their businesses overnight and making them the first sector to be hit by the COVID-19 crisis.

Sales in the ‘off-trade’ – such as supermarkets and off-licenses – were up 10.6% on the same period last year. The uplift, however, did not make up for the huge loss of beer sales in pubs, resulting in total beer sales in March 2020 down 12.7% when compared to March 2019.

The data is a clear demonstration of the cliff-edge impact of the

Prime Minister’s advice to avoid pubs, followed by the order for them to close for lockdown. With March data showing the impact of 11 days of closure on pubs, April`s data will reveal the full impact of total closure with no sales in pubs at all.

Whilst the Government has given pubs some financial support to help them through the COVID-19 lockdown, which the BBPA has welcomed, the trade association has identified significant gaps that the Government needs to fill.

In particular, 10,000 of the UK’s 47,000 pubs have not been offered any Government grant support, because they have a rateable value above the arbitrary £51k threshold. This has left some of the UK’s most iconic and well-loved pubs – who between them support thousands of jobs and contribute a huge amount to their local economies and communities – in desperate need of support and facing a real risk of closing forever.

As the social hub that binds communities together, the British Beer & Pub Association is pressing the Government to take action and give more vital support to Britain’s pubs to not only help them survive the lockdown, but also allow them to get back on their feet when it is safe

Visit www.arlapro.com/en-gb/stories/chefs-fuelling-frontline

to do so.

Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said: “These stark figures reveal how the lockdown is having a devastating impact on our pubs.

“The cliff-edge impact on our sector in March, when people were told to stop going to the pub and then pubs were shutdown, is clear to see. In April, beer sales for pubs will be zero. This is devastating our sector, who still have huge fixed costs to cover, far in excess of the sales revenue and financial support they are receiving from Government right now.

“Local pubs are the heart of our communities. They are vital socially, culturally and economically. Without further support, particularly for the 10,000 pubs who aren’t getting any grants, many pubs across the UK are in real jeopardy of being lost forever.

“When this crisis is over, the first place many will want to visit with their friends, family and neighbours is their local pub. The Government must invest in them now to save them for the future.”

Undervaluing Inbound Tourism Will Hamper The UK Economy’s Recovery From Coronavirus Says UKInbound Issue 7

Leading tourism trade association UKinbound has issued a stark warning that the country risks damaging and prolonging its economic recovery if the inbound tourism industry, worth nearly £23bn to the UK economy in 2018, does not receive long term financial support alongside domestic and outbound tourism recovery plans.

The warning comes as the association releases its latest Business Barometer results, with one in three tourism businesses stating they will have to stop trading in the next six months, even with the current Government support in place. Just over a quarter (27%) of respondents said their business will survive the Coronavirus crisis.

The barometer, compiled in conjunction with Qa research, also surveyed members about their business activity in Q1 2020, with 70% of respondents saying that bookings/visitor numbers/ customer orders were down (by an average of 55%) compared to the same period last year. 75% saw a decrease in yield, compared to Q1 2019, by an average of 56%.

Confidence about the impending 12 months also hit an all-time low, with just 11% of

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respondents saying they were confident about the coming year.

Joss Croft, CEO, UKinbound commented “Over the past two months the Government has put in place vast financial support programmes which has been a lifeline for many tourism businesses, albeit some are still falling through the gaps, but as we look to the recovery path and the lifting of domestic restrictions, it’s imperative that the needs of those businesses that rely wholly on international visitors aren’t forgotten.

“International travel is not likely to resume for many months and so we are most concerned about our tour operator and destination management company members as the majority will not be able to earn any revenue realistically until Spring 2021 at the earliest.

Inbound tourism generates almost £23 billion for the UK economy and we must do everything we can to safeguard this revenue stream. Furthermore, these businesses help to deliver on the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda as they promote and then take tourists to destinations all over the UK, generating valuable revenue for regional economies.”

The Sommelier Wine Awards 2020 Celebrates Wines From All Corners Of The Globe In Its Most Diverse Year Yet The results of the Sommelier Wine Awards (SWA) 2020 are in, revealing the competition’s most diverse line-up of winning wines to date. The UK’s leading on-trade wine competition has seen some of the fastest growing trends in the industry come to light, with stand-out entries from categories including orange wines, Semillon and Japanese wines, with a record year for Ribera del Duero and less prominent sparklings.

Stand-out regions in this year’s competition included Spain’s Ribera del Duero, with a record-year of 37 awards and 80% of entrants taking home a medal. Chilean Sauvignon Blanc producers, namely from Leyda Valley, were unexpected stars amongst the judges, commended for their refined style, which stood head and shoulders above the other Sauvignon Blancs tasted from Chile.

As well as Chilean wine, many other New World wines enjoyed the spotlight.

This year saw Japanese wine represented for a second year, with even more entries this year, and every Koshu taking home a medal, including one Gold. Red wines from Australia and Argentina made a name for themselves by experimenting with different grape varietals and blends, regarded highly amongst the judges for moving away from oak and often high price points. As a result, they received more Gold medals than ever before.

and Germany were applauded for their compatibility with food. These two categories are always big hits amongst the judges, leaving them thirsty for even more entries.

Grapes performing fantastically well at this year’s awards included New World Semillon, with over 85% of entries receiving a medal. Many other unique trends emerged from the awards this year and are expected to grow in the coming months, including orange wine, now a category in its own rights for a second year, was very warmly welcomed by the judges, paving the way for modern and interesting wines that have not previously been frequently represented in the on-trade. A huge trend across beer and spirits, the no and low category has begun to gain traction within wine, with the competition showing that it is moving in the right direction and the trend expected to see further growth in response to consumer appetite.

Speaking about SWA 2020, Micaela Martins Ferreira, Competition Director, commented: “A huge congratulations to all our medal winners. Year-on-year there is such a high standard of wines, it’s so fantastic to see entries spanning all corners of the globe, and with diversity, this year, really shining through.

Although quality Prosecco and Champagne continue to perform well, this year saw less prominent fizzes on the rise, with Crémants, frizzantes, Franciacortas, Cavas and New World sparklings, all performing extremely well.

“Covid-19 has had a huge impact on the industry, and when it bounces back, which I’m sure it will, there is an incredibly strong line up of wines available to the hospitality sector. I look forward to seeing these trends develop over the next 12 months and in particular, can’t wait to see some of the exceptional wines tasted during this year’s SWA appearing on wine lists across the UK.”

Sicilian wines were praised by judges for their quality and affordability, with a third of the red wines entered at under £10 (trade price ex VAT). Greek reds have increased considerably in quality according to the judges, with the country receiving almost 50% more Gold medals since 2019. Wine entries from Alsace

In light of the worldwide pandemic, SWA will be donating £5,000 to The Drinks Trust – a charity which provides support, care and assistance to the drinks industry workforce, who need support now, more than ever.

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FCA Seeks To Resolve Business Interruption Insurance Issues The British Beer & Pub Association, the leading trade association representing brewers and pubs, has welcomed an announcement by the FCA that it intends to obtain a court declaration to resolve contractual uncertainty in business interruption (BI) insurance cover.

There have been widespread concerns amongst businesses, and especially pubs, about the lack of clarity and certainty on Business Interruption insurance claims.

Research by the British Beer & Pub Association amongst its members found that there has been very little success when they have tried to claim on their insurance policies.

Of the member companies surveyed that have claimed through either their Business Interruption cover or through their pandemic cover, there have been no pay outs thus far.

56% of those applications made through Business Interruption cover have been rejected, whilst 44% await an outcome. For pandemic cover, 67% of applications have been rejected, with 33% awaiting an outcome.

Separate research from the British Institute of Innkeepers revealed earlier this week found that just 3% of pub businesses had been successful in receiving a Business Interruption insurance claim. The BBPA is not aware of any successful claims for Business Interruption insurance amongst its members yet.

The intervention from the FCA to increase certainty for pubs making Business Interruption claims is most welcome by the BBPA.

Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said: “There has been a severe lack of clarity for pubs on Business Interruption insurance claims. This had added to the terrible uncertainty our sector faces in what is already a very precarious situation.

“It is simply not right that 56% of pub Business Interruption claims have been rejected, whilst 44% still await an outcome.

“We hope the FCA announcement today will help resolve some of the uncertainty our sector faces on its insurance cover.”

The consortium of hospitality experts and associations which launched a crowdfunding campaign to support those who had been refused help with their business interruption insurance policies, has welcomed the announcement by the FCA which intends to seek legal clarity so resolving doubt for businesses who are facing uncertainty on their claims.

The campaign has been set up specifically for the hospitality sector so that pressure can be applied on insurers refusing to pay out.

While many operators thought that they were covered having taken out, in good faith, insurance that would provide them with some form of income in the event of an interruption to business, many were shocked to be told that they weren’t covered by the current crisis.

Kate Nicholls, UKHospitality Chief Executive said: “We need much more clarity on the insurance issue, so this action by the FCA is very welcome. Businesses have taken out policies in good faith and many are

now perplexed as to why they are not being honoured. The FCA has rightly said that, in some cases, declining to pay will be the correct decision, but in others they must be settled. The lack of transparency and confusion for businesses is adding an extra layer of disturbance at what is already a very difficult time.”

Atkinson added: “This is very good news for all those across the hospitality sector. To have a body like the FCA add its weight behind the business interruption issue will hopefully ensure those who have taken out policies in good faith to cover themselves in a time of crisis get a resolution soon.

“But we still need to be ready to launch legal action if required. FCA intervention may add clarity but they have been clear that it is not intended to encompass all disputes. We must maintain the pressure from all angles and our crowdfund campaign does just that. ” The crowdfunding campaign aims to raise enough money to initiate a three-phase plan to support hospitality businesses who have had claims rejected.

Phase one: a review of policies and insurers’ reasons for declining claims, followed by the preparation of advice on coverage under each category of policy.

Phase two: a focus on pre-action representation with formal letters being sent to insurers setting out the position on coverage. Their responses will then be reviewed and reported with settlement, in principle, being attempted.

Mypubshop Initiative Helps Pubs Transform Into Community Stores

The ground-breaking mypubshop initiative that enables pubs to trade as food shops and transform into ‘click and collect’ havens for their local communities has reported a flying start and gained further industry backing.

The mypubshop platform, powered by StarStock, gives pubs nationwide the ability to host a web shop and offer their local community essential household food items and takeaway meals.

Licensees are able to select items for the pub shop ‘inventory’ and provide an online payment service. Once orders are placed by customers, pubs then operate a collection (and now delivery) service from their venues.

Almost 500 pubs across the country have seen the opportunity offered by mypubshop and are now registered on the platform, along with 6,500 customers.

Launch partners included Brakes, Budweiser Brewing Group, CocaCola European Partners and pubcos Admiral Taverns, Greene King and St Austell. They have now been joined by new partners Costcutter, All

About Food, Heineken and its Star Pubs & Bars pub business.

Sam Ulph, Founder & CEO of StarStock, said: “When we launched this initiative, the aim was for it to be much more than just an online pub service. In this period of extended lockdown, mypubshop offers pubs a way of staying connected with their local communities through providing an essential service, helping to reinforce their role as social hubs.

“We’re thrilled with the progress so far and with the support we’ve received from all our brand partners. We’re having some exciting conversations with a number of brands and suppliers who recognise the value that our e-commerce technology offers.”

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Shiv Lewis, Manager of the Garibaldi pub in Redhill, Surrey, has benefited greatly since signing up to the platform. She said: “We’re a community run pub, so as soon as we were told to close, we looked at ways we could adapt and continue to serve the local area. mypubshop has allowed us to manage orders and effectively stagger our click and collect customers as well as prioritise those buying food for vulnerable locals. Through its partnership with Brakes, mypubshop has also given us a reliable supply of essential goods.

“To be able to continue to trade has had a tremendous benefit to our community and has relieved some of the stress around shopping from many of our locals. Alleviating the pressure on the supermarkets and providing essential goods has made a real difference to the community.”

Each transaction made via mypubshop accrues a 2% fee to cover operational costs; however, the venture is being run as a non-profit, with any surplus revenue donated directly to the NHS. mypubshop is available nationwide and pubs can register at www.mypubshop.com.

Rent Deferment ‘Only Kicking Can Down The Road’ Issue 7

Most property owners were favouring deals that would see high street rents deferred, the online audience for Davis Coffer Lyons’ virtual conference, The Future of the F+B Property Sector, heard this week.

Drake & Morgan property director Marcus Brownlow said: “One of our first concessions to landlords was ‘give us rent free and extend the lease by a certain period,’ because we completely accept that landlords aren’t there to help us.”

But in his discussions with landlords he found that “they’re favouring the rent holiday and rent deferment,” which was an unviable option for business “because it’s just kicking the can down the road.”

Peter Borg-Neal, Oakman Inns CEO, agreed, adding that “deferment also doesn’t really help landlords too much in the here and now.”

He said that in his view, “the Government closed us down and therefore the Government needs to decide, it’s the only way forward.

“Deferment only kicks the issue down the road, and the idea of giving

us a loan so we can pay rent doesn’t make any sense. The Government needs to do more.”

The event, hosted by DCL director Trevor Watson and CGA vicepresident Peter Martin, also heard from landlords, funders and advisers.

Reflecting on his experience with operators, David Roberts, partner at law firm CMS, said that in many of the conversations he’s been involved with, concerned parties are discussing a staged approach.

“A mixture of a rent-free period for the first few quarters after they open, followed by a turnover rent in arrears, until such a time that the businesses can hit like for like’s again.”

And it is by dealing with this issue in stages that operators may begin to see beneficial changes to the rent frameworks long-term, he said.

“Landlords are currently in a state of shock, they’re not at a stage where they’re willing to accept that the model may be broken,” he said.

“But when we’re two quarters in post-opening, with CVAs and prepack administrations having become the new norm, then that trading scenario will demonstrate that the system is broken, and I can see that coming down the track relatively quickly.

“This situation will encourage people to re-assess the tenant-landlord relationship, it’s going to lead to a very interesting evolution of that relationship going forward.”

But, Margaret Walsh, executive director, DCL, said that restaurant companies that had undertaken CVAs recently shouldn’t now be sur-

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prised if landlords were not looking on them generously.

One property owner helping his tenants was John James, managing director, Soho Estates, who likened the current situation to a game of pass the parcel. But he said landlords shouldn’t be the only ones to start removing the wrapper. But added that he didn’t expect his tenants to start paying rent again until they were up and running again.

Rent payments remained the biggest immediate challenge facing the industry, but operators were split in their view of the most viable solution, CGA’s latest Business Confidence Survey had revealed, Karl Chessell, CGA’s business unit director for food and retail, told the online audience of close to 500 people.

A rent-free period and extended lease was the most popular solution for tenants (28%), closely followed by rent deferral (26%), and a further 20% said they were planning to reach a part-time payment agreement with landlords.

“There’s a number of potential solutions being put forward,” said Chessell, “and hospitality has done well as a sector to lobby together, but there remains this key issue around rent. It needs to be resolved in order for operators to sustain this survival period.”

He said that a large majority of operators (89%) said that they would support the idea of a debt moratorium, but the required timescale varied, with 39% claiming they would want a nine-month moratorium, and 32% wanting the freeze to last a full year.

Greene King Partners With The Licensed Trade Charity To Launch Team Member Support Fund Greene King, the UK’s leading managed pub company and brewer, has announced the launch of a support fund in partnership with the Licensed Trade Charity to help team members affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

The Team Member Support Fund will be set-up with an initial donation of £300,000 from Greene King. The funds have been raised from a combination of voluntary salary sacrifices from the Executive Board and directors at the company and a company donation. Greene King Team Members can also donate to the fund via a Gofund page.

Subject to meeting certain criteria, all 38,000 Greene King team members will be eligible to access the fund with grants of up to £400 for those most in need of financial support during this unprecedented time.

To help manage the process, Greene King has partnered with the Licensed Trade Charity, who have been supporting workers from pubs, bars and breweries with practical advice, emotional support and financial grants since 1793. By working with the charity, Greene King has been able to accelerate the introduction of the programme and enable team members to start accessing the fund from this week.

Nick Mackenzie, Greene King CEO, said: “I am incredibly proud of the way our team members have handled this situation. But I know it has not been easy and in some cases our team members are facing real financial difficulties, through no fault of their own.

“The Team Member Support Fund aims to ease some of the burden our people are experiencing right now, we are all in this together and we are directing the funds to help those who need it most. And thanks to the help of the Licensed Trade Charity, who have done an amazing job for over 200 years supporting people in our industry who hit on hard times, we’ve been able to get the programme ready to access in a very short amount of time.”

Jim Brewster, Chief Executive Officer of the Licensed Trade Charity said: “Licensed trade people are balancing huge practical, emotional and financial pressures at the moment and we are very pleased to work with Greene King to add to the support we are able to offer at this incredibly difficult time.”

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Eight Weeks To Save The Nation’s High Streets From Armageddon increase the business rates threshold are too grim to bear.”

UK High Streets are on the brink of collapse as the eight-week countdown to the next quarterly rent instalment begins today, according to the #RaiseTheBar campaign. Figures released today by #RaiseTheBar show 54,638 businesses from pubs to shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, hotels, galleries and gyms are currently unable to access the £25,000 RHLG grant due to their business rates valuation falling between £51,000 – £150,000.

Plans for a £617m discretionary fund announced by Government on 2 May do not go far enough according to industry bodies, associations and business owners across the UK, with no guarantees local authorities will issue relief. The Government has made clear that this fund is for specific purposes, none of which support businesses with a rateable value between £51,000 to £150,000. The #RaiseTheBar campaign estimates a maximum of £1.365bn in Government support is needed to enable the RHLG grant to support all 54,638 businesses falling within a business rates threshold of £51,000 to £150,000.

As part of the RHLG guidance, only those in the retail, hospitality, leisure and assembly sectors with a business rates value of up to £51,000 can access the vital grant, leaving tens of thousands of businesses stranded. The #RaiseTheBar campaign, launched on 21 April 2020, is calling on the Government to raise the arbitrary £51,000 business rates threshold cap to £150,000, allowing over 54,638 businesses in these sectors the chance to survive.

The campaign has secured cross-party support including: – 86 Conservative MPs wrote to the Chancellor on Friday 1 May, in an open letter calling for the business rates threshold to be increased.

– The Shadow Chancellor Rt. Hon. Anneliese Dodds MP has written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rt. Hon. Rishi Sunak MP, to bring to his attention the #RaiseTheBar campaign and the urgent need to raise the threshold above £51,000 due to businesses operating in high-cost areas.

– Rt. Hon. Matt Hancock MP, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, committed to discuss the need to increase the business rates threshold with the Chancellor following a question from The Sheffield Star in the daily Government briefing on Monday 27 April.

– Rt. Hon. Lucy Powell MP for Manchester Central called for the busi-

Night Czar for the Greater London Authority, Amy Lamé said, “London’s night time economy makes a huge contribution to life in our capital, but so many of these local businesses are under threat because of the impact of the coronavirus. They have rightly closed their doors to play their part in tackling this health crisis, but too many are not being supported by the government despite losing their entire income. It’s essential the Government raises the bar so that these treasured businesses can get the support they need so they are able to open their doors again when the time comes.”

ness rates threshold to be increased in Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday 22 April.

– Rt. Hon. Dominic Raab MP for Esher and Walton has passed the request onto the Treasury following local concern.

The #RaiseTheBar campaign believes access to the £25,000 is the difference between survival and bankruptcy for businesses on High Streets across England and Wales, which have welcomed an outpouring of support from the public during lockdown choosing to support their local communities.

The grant will enable businesses to mitigate significant stock losses and cashflow challenges, including rent, that wage subsidies do not address. Many businesses are not in a position to take on further debt or have serious misgivings about being able to survive the recovery and service loans. Other cash pressures include suppliers, service charges and the cost of re-opening to repurchase stock and ongoing running costs.

Matthew Sims, CEO, Croydon BID and co-founder of #RaiseTheBar campaign said, “Access to the RHLG grant is a ticking time bomb for tens of thousands of businesses on our High Streets and in our local communities. There are just eight weeks until rent is due and the prospect of going under is an uncomfortable truth the Government needs to hear and act upon now. The consequences of failing to

Claire Alexander, owner The Ebrington Arms and The Killingworth Castle in the Cotswolds [the Good Pub Guide Gloucestershire dining pub of the year 2019],“We were utterly floored when the announcement to save hospitality turned out to mean next to nothing for us because we pay too much in business rates. 9,000 pubs like ours are currently left out and the face of the British pub will change forever if it not extended. We are the main employer in our villages, responsible for the wages of 47 families but we stand to lose everything as we have been abandoned by the grant scheme and its arbitrary cut off point as our business rates are £75,000 and £72,000. The Government has effectively said my business, my staff and the best pubs in the UK aren’t worth saving.”

Richard Burge, Chief Executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: “The Government has rightly received praise for its rapid and expansive economic support package during the coronavirus crisis.

All these measures were introduced at pace, and understandably there are areas where the detail hasn’t worked for all businesses. One crucial hole is the £51,000 national cap on the business rates relief grant – which penalises many small, and independent businesses in the capital simply because of the high land values in London.

“LCCI support the Raise The Bar campaign, as by raising the rateable value cap it would give thousands of businesses access to the business rates relief that increases their chance of surviving the crisis, and enable them to play a role in London’s recovery.”

Case studies of businesses across England and Wales are available upon request for quotes and interviews. They include pubs, restaurants, shops and Business Improvement Districts.

New Tool Helps Seafood Businesses To Find Financial Support During COVID-19 Seafish, the public body that supports the £10bn UK seafood industry, has released a new online tool to help seafood businesses identify what government financial support schemes they may be eligible for.

Seafish’s new “Government support measures for the UK seafood industry” tool allows seafood businesses to quickly identify what government support they may be eligible to access during the COVID-19 outbreak. By selecting their business type and location, seafood businesses can access information

about packages which may be available to them and details of how to apply. The tool – which can be accessed from the Seafish website – covers seafood sector specific packages and those open to businesses more generally from the UK Government and the devolved administrations in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.

Aoife Martin, Director of Operations at Seafish said: “With various support packages for seafood businesses and announcements from each of the home nations in recent weeks, businesses may have found it difficult to keep track of exactly what help they are eligible for.

“We have collated the relevant information into our financial support measures tool to provide businesses throughout the seafood supply chain with a quick and easy way to identify the government support that can help them through this challenging time.

“We also provided economic data and analysis to the governments to allow them to develop support packages tailored for the seafood industry. We’re also

FAST COMMERCIAL FINANCE FOR ALL EMERGENCY SITUATIONS Call For All Business Debts us toda Complete or Partial Re-Finance y with Redevelopment & Refurbishment delaout y Purchase & Expansion Cashflow Correction & Working Capital

All cases considered, please call in confidence to discuss www.hotelandpubrescue.co.uk

enquiries@hotelandpubrescue.co.uk

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supporting industry with similar queries and continue to respond to all of these requests.”

The coronavirus section of their website also contains a list of other sources of advice and support

for individuals and businesses in seafood, as well as updates on the work that Seafish is doing to support the sector through the current situation.

Visit www.seafish.org

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Outdoor Leisure

Café Culture - Pavement Profit

We are an independent supplier serving the outdoor restaurant trade with supplies for outdoor seating areas. We have some large clients including Gondola group along with many smaller cafe bars, restaurants and public houses.

the continual bumps and scrapes outdoor goods receive combined with the harsh British climate really needs something tough enough for the job.

We also supply Markilux awning which are some of the best made in the industry and Uhlmann parasols another top rated German brand.

We design and manufacturer our own windbreaks and use the best materials available. For anyone looking long term that saves you money as you won’t be replacing cheap internet imports next season. It’s one area where it doesn’t pay to buy budget as

Bespoke goods are also a speciality with custom made menu holders, waiter stations and planters all to you requirement. If we can help you do drop a line to sales@cafeculture.biz

High Quality Outdoor Furniture from LeisureBench LeisureBench are an industry-leading supplier of quality indoor and outdoor furniture, offering unrivalled care and service for our customers.

Our furniture is selected for strength, longevity, quality and value. We source worldwide to ensure that both our ethical standards of production and our high environmental demands for sustainability are met.

We are situated in the very heart of the UK and with over 100,000 square feet of warehousing we can ensure a reliable supply and fast delivery wherever and whenever you need us.

We are also participants in LOFA's 'Made Aware' scheme which focusses primarily on sustainable forestry.

QUALITY

We deliver high quality outdoor furniture suitable for any commercial environment. Nearly all of our products are FSC certified and EU compliant too.

VALUE Because we buy direct from manufacturers worldwide and deliver all our stock direct from our own warehouses we can offer the best value available anywhere both online and offline.

SERVICE Our customer service team will do everything they can to make sure your furniture is delivered to you where and when you want it. We go the extra mile to ensure our customers have the best possible service.

Visit www.leisurebench.co.uk

CINDERS Doubles Product Range

Please mention the Caterer, Licensee & Hotelier News when replying to advertising

UK manufacturer Cinders Barbecues Ltd announces a doubling of its product range for 2020.

LPgas innovations include an operator-friendly wok burner for kiosks and trailers and two new barbecues which meet the latest UKLPG Code of Practice 24 for tented areas and build-ups.

‘This is our time to coordinate recovery with our distributors at home and abroad’ says Karen Swift, Marketing & Business

Development Director.

The 2020 range also includes an upgraded version of their popular half-size folding barbecue. ‘the new Festival SG80F is ideal for when customers begin to gather again in smaller groups, preferring outdoor areas whenever possible,’ adds Karen.

Call 01524 262900, email info@cindersbarbecues.co.uk, or visit www.cindersbarbecues.co.uk

Design and Refit Capricorn Contract Furnishings Capricorn Contract Furnishings are now firmly established as one of the country's largest stockist and supplier of quality contract furnishings to cafes, bars, restaurants, pubs, clubs and hotels.

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For more information or a Capricorn Contract Furnishings catalogue and price list contact Brian Pengelly on 01395 233 320, visit www.ccf-ltd.uk

Capricorn are based in a 40, 000 square feet showroom and distribution warehouse on the outskirts of Exeter in Devon. From within the distribution area we are able to offer a next day delivery service on thousands of products including tables , chairs , stools and lounge furniture.

Customers are encouraged to visit our large showroom to view an extensive range of furniture ideally suited for the leisure market. Here you can relax and let Capricorn help and advise you with your requirements. Opening hours for the showroom are Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.

Drakes Bar Furniture - UK Bar Furniture Supplier We pride ourselves in providing the best quality items at great prices with fantastic customer service and can supply bespoke tailored made furniture such as booths, tables, seating or ‘off the peg’ items.

Drakes Bar Furniture not only sell chairs, stools, tables we also design build and install all types of fixed seating, pews and booth seating for pubs, clubs, bars, restaurants and clubs.

When fitting out a premise the seating is almost paramount for a successful space. Fixed seating, booth seating or banquette seating as its also called can come in variety of colours, finishes, types and styles. Below are just a few examples showing what we have done in the past.

With clever planning, seating gen-

erates a great flow for customers and staff around a pub, restaurant, cafe or club. It can be used to divide areas, create new spaces in a room and offer intimacy allowing for the perfect social meet up.

The beauty of bespoke fixed seating is that we can make the most of and take advantage of your space and features. We can come to your venue and measure up, give you advice and show you examples of our past work, finishes, types and styles.

We have a wide range of Bar Furniture, including tables, stools, chairs, outdoor beer garden, fixed seating and banqueting furniture.

If you require a bespoke quote either call us on 01422 839 690 or you can send us an email.

See the advert below for details.

Please mention the Caterer, Licensee & Hotelier News when replying to advertising

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Increase Awareness of Your Business With HFE Signs be a little goldmine!

The simple answer is awareness, I’m sure they do ok or they wouldn’t be there, but it was just by luck that we stopped, and we spent just over £50.

How many others drove past? How many more £50 could they have taken that day?

Awareness is a vital essential for any product or service if its going to a success – You might have the best Chef with the best menu and keen prices but no customers or you might have average pub grub slightly overpriced and be rushed off your feet.

The key to success is identifying you target market; do you have competition and what can you offer that they don’t? Once you’ve established your market how do you let them know.

I recently walked into a pub after my daughter’s gymnastics competition, the carpark was empty, it was 4:30pm on a Sunday. I popped my head in and asked ‘are you doing food’ – the lady on the bar pointed to the carvery, I called in the rest of the family and we had a super meal, absolutely what we needed after a busy day. Obviously, we’ll go back, and we’ve also told a few people.

So why was the carpark empty when the food was so good? The price was £8.95 for large and £6.95 for medium. There are a few pubs nearby but none of them have a carvery. I went away thinking that place should be full it has potential to

A simple Carvery Banner on the fence would make every passing car aware of what’s on offer.

Pubs, Hotels and Restaurants use Banners all the time for promoting offers and raising awareness.

HFE Signs have a wide range of pre-designed food banners just for this purpose. HFE Signs have Carvery Banners, Steak Night, Quiz Night, Grill Night and hundreds more – Even if you’re just looking for ideas you should check out their library!

HFE Signs have been designing and printing pub and food banners since 1996. A typical PVC Banner with eyelets 8ft x 3ft costs just £45+vat and if you order two, you get a 3rd FREE and also FREE UK Delivery! Check out HFE today at www.hfe-signs.co.uk

Retain Payment or ID Cards & Be PCI Compliant Whilst Increasing Profits

When a vendor retains a credit card or debit card, or cent (90%) indeed handing over his or her ID card as security • Walkouts are reduced by at least fifty percent (50%) against running a tab or renting sporting or other equip- • Tab mistakes drop significantly and finally, ment, there is always some uncertainty • There is a major uptick in sales about the safety of the card whilst out of If you are concerned about how the customers’ possession.

CardsSafe works within the PCI scheme, CardsSafe® eliminates the need to Alan Gill from the independent PCI certiworry about any loss or theft as it is the fying company Orthus Limited states: “The simplest and most efficient way to ensure PCI DSS standard encompassed 264 conthe card’s safety from potential misuse. trols. CardsSafe helps to reduce the need to meet all of these through ‘compensating The CardsSafe® system has now controls’ which allow businesses to combecome the “best practice” way of hanply to the standard without having to dling credit and debit cards in the hospichange the way they operate”. In addition tality and leisure industries. More than to the commercial benefits the eighty thousand boxes are in use every CardsSafe® solution therefore helps merday and hundreds more are added every chants become PCI compliant, which truly week. gives peace of mind for all!

Customers who share their experience To order, please contact CardsSafe with our staff report these benefits: Limited on either of: Phone: 0845 5001040 • Chargeback drops by more than ninety peror visit www.cardssafe.com

Woodman Chairs

Woodman Chairs is a long established, dedicated chair manufacturer and wholesaler who make most of their own chairs. We offer a wide and varied choice of solid oak and beech chair and table styles – both modern and contemporary – with many finish and seat options. Included in our range is an exciting choice of sturdy bar stools and bar tables.

The fact that we make gives us greater control and flexibility. It also enables us to offer bespoke chair and chair frame or component production to end customers or other suppliers and manufacturers looking for their own design or

seeking to create a unique range or theme, again in both oak and beech, raw or finished.

Always keen to innovate, Woodman are constantly introducing new styles and have recently added Carver options to their more popular dining chairs and have further expanded their range of bar stools to include rush seated and fabric pad options. Here is a simple decision that won’t require a Referendum!

If you want your customers to have the best choice, with honest quality, at affordable prices, with decent lead times and no minimum order, then you need only vote Woodman for your chairs.

For further details call 01884 841789, visit www.woodmanchairs.co.uk or email sales@woodmanchairs.co.uk

Design and Refit Sims - The First Port Of Call For Banquette Seating The Contract Furniture Group Issue 7

We are a family run business with 3 generations of commercial furniture manufacturing experience.

Unlike other suppliers we manufacture all our seating inhouse, no importing, no subcontracting. We have full control over every aspect from design to installation to ensure every product leaves our workshops punctually and to our reputable high quality.

CLH Digital

visits and installation fees.

Also, we offer a range of furnishings – tables, chair and bedroom furniture. To request a brochure or to discuss your requirement further please contact our sales team on 01945 450957 email Sales@simscf.com Web www.simscf.com

Proudly offering 2 versions of Banquette Seating, firstly our “Premium Made to Measure” Banquette Seating which is built to your exact design, shape and size, then installed by our professional installation team. You can have anything from floor to ceiling designs to seating that perfectly follows the walls in a period setting.

unique source and supply service; if you send us a picture of an item we will do our up most to supply to you at the best price.

Contract Furniture Group has been set up to offer quality contract dining furniture to the hotel, restaurant, pub trades and leisure industries at realistic prices.

We carry a lot of our range in stock so we can help you to meet your deadlines. We also offer a

Secondly our “Modular Banquette Seating” which is freestanding, set size units for you to mix and match to best fit your space. Made to the same high standards as our premium range without setup costs, site

All our furniture is manufactured to the highest standards, we only use hardwood frames which are glued screwed and dowelled for strength. crib5 interliner (if required) sprung seat areas or webbing and top quality Italian leathers and fabrics.

For further information, call 0115 965 9030, visit www.contractfurniture.co.uk or email info@contractfurniture.co.uk

ILF Chairs - Seating with Wider Appeal Crib 5 fire regulations.

The majority of our products are available in a choice of frames, colours and we can offer an extensive choice of fabrics including real Leather and Faux Leather. In addition, we also able to offer a full service on bench seating and re-upholstery.

ILF have been supplying top quality indoor and outdoor chairs and tables for over the past 30 years to the hospitality market. We offer a wide selection of products to suit all tastes and as importantly, budgets!

We pride ourselves outstanding personal service with the motto ' No job is ever too big or too small – it’s customer satisfaction that counts'.

In this demanding Health & Safety led market place we guarantee that all our fabrics and fillings meet the exacting BS5852

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Delivery times are generally 4 weeks from order, but we can also offer a "fast track" service for certain products.

Why not contact us at sales@ilfchairs.com or on 01293 783783 and find out how we can help you fulfil your seating and table needs.

Please mention the Caterer, Licensee & Hotelier News when replying to advertising

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Design and Refit

Trent Furniture’s Italia Bistro Chair Offers Italian Style at a Competitive Price Bring a hint of Italian style and quality to your establishment with the Italia Bistro chair and tall stool from Trent Furniture. The classic ladder-back design and customisable seat makes this range a perfect fit for any commercial environment from bars and pubs to restaurants, bistros and cafes.

The frames are crafted from solid beechwood and are available in a timeless dark oak or walnut finish. Expertly manufactured, they are durable, sturdy and easy to care for – perfect for a busy contract environment.

fashion using materials from sustainable sources. Trent Furniture offers a huge choice of upholstery patterns and colours which are hard wearing, easy to clean and CRIB 5 fire retardant. As the Italia Bistro range is upholstered inhouse you can even send your own fabric to fit with your décor and branding.

The plush and comfortable seat pads are created in an eco-friendly

MST Auctioneers

MST AUCTIONEERS Ltd specialise in handling & auctioning a wide variety of goods.

We act for Insolvency Practitioners, Receivers, Bailiffs and Solicitors as well as large PLCs. We are members of The National Association of Auctioneers and Valuers (NAVA).

For the past 25 years, we've provided a unique disposal service tailored to suit, liquidators,

Square One Interiors Starting out in his garden shed, Jamie never thought that his new range of reclaimed furniture would become as successful as it has over the past 2 years.

Having had a history in design and furniture design, an idea was born and he decided to run with it. He loved the idea of a rustic looking, industrial range which was also eco friendly and sustainable. He soon found that a modern twist was also achievable, by using bright colours on the steel frames, as well as several different wood finishes

The Italia Bistro Chair starts from just £29.90 and the Tall Italia Bistro Stool from £44.90 (plus VAT) See the Italia Bistro range and more great options at www.trentfurniture.co.uk or call us on 0116 2986 286 for more information.

banks, receivers as well as private and corporate vendors. We carry out probate valuations and conduct complete house and commercial clearances.

We have the largest Auction venue in the South of England. Our regular monthly Auctions occupy 45,000 sq.ft. of undercover space, selling over 2500 lots from 3 rostrums over two days.

We have storage and removal facilities. In addition we have forklifts for machinery up to 5 tons.

We also hold regular Auctions ”On Site” and "On Line" See the advert on this page for further details.

which would compliment the overall design.

Making furniture from scratch also had its benefits, as Jamie soon found that businesses would approach him with specific needs and requirements, meaning that he was able to provide a fully bespoke service, as well as offering design and advice.

Since his humble beginnings in the garden shed, Jamie and the company have now work with hospitality operators, pubs, bars and hotels, as well as some large contract furniture companies and high street names.

Our portfolio and workforce are growing and we are very excited to be working on some fantastic projects moving forwards, so watch this space!

Visit www.squareoneinteriors.co.uk

Proper By SCT Proper By SCT is now it its 3rd year supplying the trade/wholesale sectors for shop, camp site, touring sites, bar, hotels, butchers, farm shop and everything else in between.

Products and Services out with FEDEX for next day delivery anywhere in the UK with European deliveries on a 3 day service.

Our Proper Pork Crackling has a 6 months BB, Fabulous Fudge 6 Months and our Delectable Nuts 12 months.

Our full range is available to see on our retail website so please call 01202875280 or email trade@sctsct.com for a trade price list. See page 21 for details.

We now tick more boxes than anyone else in our field.

Proper Pork Crackling: ALLERGEN FREE & KETO Delectable Nuts, Peanuts: VEGAN, GLUTEN FREE & KETO Delectable Nuts, Cashews: VEGAN & GLUTEN FREE Fabulous Fudge: GLUTEN FREE We not only supply are products pre packed but loose with a free 3L display jar, supplied in a large clip seal bucket for the perfectly free taste every time. which give you an even greater margin.

All orders received before 2pm each day are sent

Free App Gives All Your Guests Their Own Wireless TV Headphones without keeping everyone else up. AudioZone has also been popular with hearing impaired guests.

The standard service includes synchronised TV audio of the main UK free to air channels. For many bars and hotels without Sky this will cover all their guests’ needs. An individually tailored channel listing including premium channels for Sky subscribers can be arranged with a call to AudioZone.

Free app gives all your guests their own wireless TV headphones.

Better still, the standard AudioZone service is provided completely free to all UK venues with no requirement to install any equipment or even register an account.

Over 40.000 people have already installed the free AudioZone app to tune into muted TVs in pubs and airport lounges or to listen to TV in a hotel room

All you have to do is make your guests aware that the service is available. Give AudioZone a call to get promotional posters or TV frame stickers sent out to your site. All your guests have to do is: install the free app, join the WiFi, select the channel they wish to tune in to, and press play.

Why not install the AudioZone app and give it a quick test yourself right now? sales@audiozone.net 0207 175 8880 www.AudioZone.net

Caternet, Powered by Zupa Caternet is hospitality software developed with operators, buyers and chefs, who have all experienced the same operational and financial challenges as you. It is specifically designed to help the catering sector remove manual processes. You will buy more competitively, manage nutrition and allergen risk, enjoy paperless financial administration, and reduce overheads.

Our live price guide guarantees competitive purchasing for all your procurement needs, not just food and drink. Your trusted suppliers join Caternet for free, and if you’re looking for new relationships, we already have over 2,500 suppliers on board. There are no hidden discounts or rebates.

Mirroring your approved budgets

and utilising your existing finance system, our software provides you with full spend control. Simply set specific, authorised spending levels at a user, group or departmental level across your trading locations. Your budgets won’t be broken, and with paperless reporting, you’ll never chase an invoice or credit note again.

Meeting allergen and nutrition legislation is a constant concern.

Our comprehensive recipes module provides live data from supplier to servery, enabling you to build and publish recipes whilst remaining compliant.

Start saving time and money today.

023 8212 4099 www.caternet.co.uk sales@caternet.co.uk

Allergen Labelling: How to Meet Natasha’s Law Natasha’s Law was enshrined in the UK on 5th September 2019. The crux of the law is that all prepacked food will have to be individually labelled with ingredients highlighting all allergens.

The tragic events of 2016 leading to this law coming into force were reported nationally. Natasha EdnanLaperouse was a 15 year old girl when she suffered an anaphylactic allergic reaction to poppy seeds in a baguette. The product was prepared on site for sale on site and as such required no labelling under UK or EU law.

Natasha’s Law changes that.

Positive ID Labels can offer you a range of solutions to ensure you fulfil Natasha’s law: • Printer – desktop, industrial or high speed industrial printers with printer software for your labels • Labels – printed to order with your brand design to any specification you want • Data Management Software – Nutridata LiteTM to ensure the data on your labels is accurate and legally compliant • Standalone Keyboard – allows you to run your printer without a computer • Printers & Labelling Software

All of our printers are supplied with the appropriate Label Direct for SOLOTM software.

This is a labelling software solution that allows you to design the layout and content of your labels. The software solution is licensed to the printer and can be installed on as many computers as you like.

Once you have completed design of your label, you can upload the label design and data to the printer.

Label Direct for SOLO uses a “What you see is what you get” interface so designing labels is as easy as it can be.

Visit www.pid-labelling.co.uk

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For Lovers Of Speciality Coffee – The Jura WE8 Bean To Cup Coffee Machine Wherever customers can enjoy superlative coffee, the atmosphere is warm and relaxed Anyone who appreciates the finer things in life and the wide choice of speciality coffees, will love the WE8.

The WE8 offers 12 different specialities . JURA has perfected the complete brewing process for short, speciality coffees, allowing the WE line to make them to professional barista standard every time.

Cleanliness and hygiene are essential in the workplace, so integrated rinsing and cleaning programmes, combined with specially developed cleaning products for JURA coffee machines, ensure perfect hygiene at the touch of a button.

Because requirements vary

G&I Spirit Group G&I Spirit Group are a group of mixologists and bar owners, all related with family ties.

We felt that when we were serving customers, some of the base spirits we were using left a bit to be desired.

We started to work over 3 years ago with our master distiller to produce a line to start with of 6 x SKU All super premium with the direction being on avoiding the “Burn Sensation” which I as a consumer have always found to be unpleasant and a block to purchasing more drinks, be in a mixer, straight or in a cocktail scenario.

This in our view would and was having a negative effect on the sales revenue of venues serving this as a customer lead targeted area.

So after a lot of “tooing and froing” we had a development of lines which were now ready to be produced to our own requirement and idiosyncrasies.

All Super premium 1 x 88 Vodka Masters Award Winning 1 x 88 Gin Gold Medal 1 x Jillions Gin Not entering into a comp yet Mis Amigos Tequila:

from one situation to another, the WE8 comes with many options for programming and customisation. The amount of ground coffee and water can be adapted to suit personal preferences and the cups and glasses used.

WE8 packages are available with JURA I Ltr Cool Control and cup warmer, adding to the professional presentation of your customer coffee offering. The suggested daily capacity is 40 cups a day suiting many cosy pubs, bars, restaurants or staff rest areas.

To view the full range of JURA Professional bean to cup coffee machines and full information on JURA, go to uk.jura.com or sales@uk.jura.com or see the advert on page 2.

Chocolate Gold Medal Winning Chocolate and Lime Silver Medal Winning Coffee Silver Medal Winning Chocolate Cream Tequila and Strawberry Cream Tequila both @ 15% We are looking to educate the bars and venues we work with, so that tequila is moving away from the unpleasant experience that most people associate with tequila.

Forget the Salt and Lime, drink a well-balanced tequila that has been distilled with passion and smoothness with authentic Mexican Flavours like Chocolate, Lime and Coffee to make a spirit drink/liqueur that can be drunk long and or over ice.

We are looking for our tequilas to be respected as is a good cognac or Whisky.

We are adding 3 new variants to our range in the early part of 2020 Café Latte Tequila Mocha Tequila Mocha Cream Tequila Are we concentrating on the tequilas as our go to brand?

No, we are actively working on Cognac,Whisky and a bourbon collection and have plans to increase our current range to 43/45 Sku in the next 3-5 years!

See the advert on the back cover or visit the website at www.gi-spiritgroup.co.uk

Lamb Weston Launches ‘The DUKES, A Proper British Chip That is a Cut Above the Average!

It’s the moment the entire country has been waiting for – discerning citizens rise up and prepare to rejoice in this great British occasion as Lamb Weston launches ‘The DUKES’, elegantly exciting, perfect pub chips – with chips this good, one can see why the British started queuing!

Allow us to introduce to you The Dukes of Chippingdom – Proper British Chips. Distinctively natural, gloriously golden, royally rustic, thick-cut chips – made from 100% British potatoes - The Dukes are more British than a British bulldog in a union jack waistcoat, spiffing!

We all know that everyone loves chips, and none more than pub goers; more than half (56.2%) of pub dinner occasions include chips, fries or wedges as a side, and chunky, thick-cut chips are the most ordered potato product in pubs*.

In a recent consumer test^ almost 40% declared their love of chips as a side, more than 60% said they prefer skin-on in a pub, and a whopping 72% said they are willing to pay a bit more in a pub for a British sourced product.

The most important attributes of a chip were cited as having a crispy outside, being thick cut with a fluffy inside and a having a hand-cut appearance.

Enter, The DUKES! Brought to you by innovative global leader, Lamb Weston, The DUKES are super tasty, irregularly thick

cut to appear homemade and distinctive in character.

With gloriously golden edges, and a richly rewarding taste, Dukes will grace every plate with a guarantee of quality that’s as firm as a gentleman’s handshake.

These little beauties have been irregularly cut, with feathered, golden edges. They are beautifully crispy on the outside – even though they’re non-coated – fluffy on the inside, are available with skin-off and skin-on, and they’re ready to make their grand entrance, gracing pub plates across the land.

So come on, let’s make this chip nation proud! Be upstanding and make some noise for The DUKES! So far, they have already earned their place in the Craft Guild of Chefs highly esteemed Product Endorsement gallery, with an above average rating, they are Red Tractor certified and gluten free.

These are like no ordinary chips; they are the ultimate quintessentially British menu item with a proud and distinguished British heritage. 100% satisfaction guaranteed. Chippingdom’s finest creation are proper pub chips, cut from British potatoes.

Step aside, pretenders to the throne, make way for the Proper British Chip. The DUKES are remarkably reliable, fabulously fry-able, marvellously moreish and British, through and through. Characterful in their cut, they’re fluffy and light, yet as reliable as a gentleman’s character and as crisp as his tailoring.

For innovative ideas, recipes and potato inspiration, head over to www.lambweston.eu/uk , call 0800 963962 or email us at salesUK@lambweston.eu or see the advert on the facing page. * LW research 2019 & MCA Eating Out Panel 2018 ^ Consumer survey, 9th September 2019, London. 42kg of chips sampled with 310 consumers