Philglas & Swiggot wine merchant bought by industry consortium including Justin Knock MW

Independent London wine merchant Philglas & Swiggot has been bought over by Justin Knock MW and business partner Damien Jackman, backed by a consortium of investors from across the trade.

Vino Wines is gaining ground in Edinburgh

Quality wines combined with the canny idea to sell premium ready-meals is making Vino a destination wine store in Scotland.

Fine wine merchant AWC appoints David Murphy operations manager

Fine wine and spirits merchant AWC has appointed David Murphy, formerly of Wine Networks and Liberty Wines, operations manager, as its business grows. 

Borough Wines opens sixth shop in London

Independent merchant Borough Wines has opened its sixth London  shop, this time in Clerkenwell.

Will the real Brigitte Bardot/Bordeaux please stand up?

Kent wine merchant Taurus has sexed up its image with the arrival of a new (actually it is an antique) Citroen HY van as a key member of its delivery fleet.

Busines rates relief welcomed by drinks retailers and pubs

The 2% cap on business rates and commitment to a full "structural review", as revealed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his Autumn Statement, has been broadly welcomed across all sides of the drinks industry - both on and off-trade.

Thousands of Scottish bar, restaurant and drinks retail staff banned from selling alcohol

Thousands of bar, restaurant and drinks retail staff in Scotland have had their personal licences revoked after failing to meet deadlines over refresher training.

Good Wine Shop opens third outlet

Independent merchant the Good Wine Shop is opening a third branch - this time in Surrey's Esher - with plans for up to two more outlets in the pipeline.

London Wine Fair on look out for niche wine importers for its Esoterica fixture for independents

Small, independent or niche wine importers have the chance to book a place in the Esoterica feature at the London Wine Fair that has seen 80% of last year's exhibitors book again for the 2015 show.

UK retailers need to target seven different types of shopper, says Kantar study

The changing face of  UK retailing is driven by the way consumers now behave and has created seven types of shopper, according to new research revealed today by Kantar Insights, the retail insights company.

Justin Keay is bowled over by the first Winchester Wine Festival

Not long ago, Winchester called to mind England's oldest public school and wealthy retired folk clutching their Daily Telegraphs and taking the inevitable black labrador for its daily constitutional. Whilst these images still hold true, a quiet revolution has taken hold in England's former capital city.

US Black Friday shopping extravaganza takes off in the UK

Despite figures from Kantar indicating that the UK has not yet fully embraced the US shopping extravaganza that is Black Friday, this morning major retail websites like Tesco Direct have crashed due to the demand in online traffic, and there have been reports of fights breaking out amongst shoppers in stores around the country. Black Friday it appears has arrived in the UK.

Rugby stars Ruan Pienaar and Robbie Diack launch South African wine

Frustrated restaurateurs create homemade vermouth for own Ethicurean site and independents

Frustrated that they could not find a vermouth good enough to serve in their Bristol restaurant, the team behind the Ethicurean restaurant in Wrington, Bristol, decided to go and make their own.

France Summit video: UK trade figures on how to get the most out of French wine

The chance to understand the France wine category better, hear the views of leading UK buyers, distributors and retailers and meet like-minded people in the trade were some of the key reasons given by visitors  who attended last month's Harpers France Summit.

The Vineyard in Dorking has an offer it wants its supppliers to refuse

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but not always.

Hangingditch to attract 500 guests to Manchester Cathedral for annual wine fair

Hangingditch, the leading Manchester independent wine merchant, is expecting up to 500 guests to attend its annual consumer wine fair on Friday which also offers live classical musical and operatic singing in the impressive backdrop of the Manchester Cathedral.

Amathus opens fourth London store in Shoreditch

Drinks distributor and retailer Amathus is opening a fourth London store, this time in Shoreditch, after buying the City Beverage Company business.

London's property market 'brutal' for expanding wine independents

London's independent wine merchants and restaurateurs say finding new locations is "extremely challenging", given intense competition from established operators.

Suppliers and indpendents unite for Best Practice debate

To help independents and suppliers work together more effectively Harpers hosted an open trade debate to see the difference the Best Practice Guidelines are having on day-to-day business.