ACCOLADE WINES SELLS BRISTOL WAREHOUSING FACILITY TO GLASS CONTAINER MANUFACTURER

A Bristol bottling and warehousing facility has been sold by global wine and spirits company Accolade Wines, to glass container manufacturer Encirc360.

As well as manufacturing glass containers, Encirc (part of the Spanish glass bottle and packaging business Vidrala) offers services throughout the supply chain, including filling facilities, warehousing and logistics.

The Park, based at Avonmouth, used to bottle and store solely Accolade wines, but in 2020 it became a contract packer for any business in the drinks industry. Accolade Wines will have a 10-year contract bottling and distribution agreement with Encirc to ensure ongoing support for its flagship beverage brands.

The Park is capable of producing the equivalent of more than 30 million, ninelitre cases of wine a year. The facility is currently zero waste and carbon neutral, with the installation of wind turbines in 2019 contributing to the use of 100 per cent renewable electricity.

The move will enable Encirc to provide an efficient, sustainable supply chain service across the UK beverage market.

Accolade Wines Chief Executive Officer, Robert Foye, said the decision to divest The Park facility and enter a long-term bottling and distribution agreement with Encirc would support the company’s growth in key markets, including the UK and Europe.

As part of the transaction, approximately 400 employees at The Park have transferred to Encirc.

Growth of 800 per cent in a year at cloud commerce business Pax8

Leading cloud commerce marketplace, Pax8 has opened a new office at tech hub The Distillery in Bristol, after revealing growth of 800 per cent in the year.

Remember The Little Chef restaurants on an A road near you? Most of them closed a few years ago, but now Loungers, the Bristol-based nationwide operator of all-day café-bars and restaurants under the Lounge and Cosy Club brands, is resurrecting the idea by launching a new roadside restaurant brand, Brightside.

Loungers has acquired four sites with the first set to open on the A38, south of Exeter.

The company has ambitious plans to roll out Brightside across the UK predominantly on A-roads in a sector increasingly dominated by drive-through and QSR (quick service restaurant) concepts in recent years.

Brightside will offer classic, comfort foodstyle dishes – including a brunch menu, burgers, pizzas, and kids’ menu – in “nostalgic” surroundings.

Alex Reilley, Founder Chairman of Loungers, said: “We’ve had the itch for a while to create a roadside restaurant concept that’s fit-for-purpose in the 21st century. For many people, the highlight of childhood road trips in days gone by was a stop at the likes of Little Chef. We believe there is a gap in the market for a fresh concept for customers to take a proper break and enjoy wholesome food and hospitality, in a landscape that is currently dominated by drive-thru and QSR formats.”

Loungers currently operates 175 Lounges and 35 Cosy Club venues around the UK. The Group recently announced it was targeting 30 new Lounge openings in the current financial year and between 32 and 34 on an ongoing basis.

Pax8 simplifies the way organisations buy, sell, and manage cloud solutions. Its consolidated billing, automated provisioning, and PSA integrations aim to modernise the channel’s cloud journey.

Last year, Pax8 raised $185 million in new equity capital from investor SoftBank Vision Fund 2, which increased the company’s valuation to a hefty $1.7 billion. Pax8’s number of partners is now close to 3,500, after globally cloud-enabling more than 350,000 businesses with its marketplace, education, support, and solutions. The company won the “Distributor of the Year” and “Biggest Impact New Partner” at the 2022 Network Group Exhibition and Gala Awards and has now celebrated more than 55 award wins.