Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Distillers and bar owners call on chancellor to cut alcohol duty

Published: 05 February, 2024

A group of award-winning small distillers have penned an open letter to Jeremy Hunt calling for a cut to alcohol duty in the Spring Budget.

Welsh hospitality calls for business rates relief

Published: 14 December, 2023

UKHospitality Wales has called on the Welsh government to boost beleaguered pubs, hotels and restaurants in Wales and provide vital business rates relief in next week’s Budget.

Scotland calls out government for pubs closing at twice the rate of England

Published: 05 December, 2023

The Scottish Beer & Pub Association (SBPA) and the Scottish Licensed Trade Association (SLTA) have issued a joint appeal to support their sector after it emerged that English businesses will receive a 75% reduction in rates bills for the financial year 2024-25.

Licenced premises down by a third since 2003

Published: 30 October, 2023

The number of licenced premises in Britain has fallen below 100,000, marking a 31% decline in the two decades since 2003.

No-shows in hospitality double

Published: 18 October, 2023

The latest research from Zonal and CGA by NIQ, reveals the number of consumers not showing up for reservations in pubs, bars and restaurants has doubled since September last year.

Pub closures surge again in Q2 breaking Q1 record

Published: 07 August, 2023

Pub closures reached back-to-back quarterly records in Q2 2023, smashing the previous unwanted benchmark set in Q1.

Flaming June offers some respite for hospitality

Published: 26 July, 2023

A scorching June helped Britain's managed restaurant, pub and bar groups achieve a ninth successive month of year-on-year sales growth, according to the latest Coffer CGA Business Tracker.

Live sport essential for UK pub and bars

Published: 13 July, 2023

With a summer of sport in full swing and the women's World Cup just around the corner, new research by CGA has revealed the increased spend and dwell times pubs can enjoy when screening live sports.

Pub closures reach decade high

Published: 19 June, 2023

Pub closures reached the highest quarterly figure in a decade in Q1 2023, according to top 30 accountancy practice Price Bailey.

Scotland on-trade facing ‘tidal wave’ of challenges, says SLTA

Published: 31 January, 2023

Scotland’s pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels face an unprecedented cocktail of challenges, according to the most recent Scottish Licenced Trade Association (SLTA) survey.

On-trade closures tally one an hour as economic crisis bites

Published: 20 October, 2022

Hospitality has lost 2,200 licenced venues in three months as crippling costs and staffing issues continue to hit business operators.

UKH urges government to issue on-trade rescue package

Published: 31 August, 2022

UKHospitality (UKH)chief executive Kate Nicholls has written an urgent letter to the UK government, outlining the potential disaster facing thousands of businesses in light of the energy crisis.

St Patrick's Day, weather and sport lift drinks sales to a 2022 high

Published: 28 March, 2022

Last week’s out-of-home drinks sales were 7% up on pre-pandemic levels, CGA’s latest Drinks Recovery Tracker reveals.

Sales of BWS resurgent in hospitality sector after relaxation of restrictions

Published: 04 February, 2022

The easing of Covid-19 restrictions is having a positive impact on drink sales across the on-trade, according to the latest CGA Drinks Recovery Tracker.

End of Plan B restrictions brings ‘cautious optimism’ for hospitality boost

Published: 28 January, 2022

Sales of alcohol in the on-trade have continued to lag behind the levels seen in 2020, according to the latest CGA Drinks Recovery Tracker, yet a resurgence is forecast as Plan B restrictions come to an end this week.

Tough Christmas prompts new calls for extended relief for hospitality

Published: 04 January, 2022

New figures from UKHospitality show that pubs, bars and restaurants lost £10,335 on average in the week leading up to Christmas, due to fears over the new Covid-19 variant.

Dine-in occasions continue to increase as restaurants, pubs and bars grow share

Published: 10 November, 2021

Consumers are increasingly dining out with more going to restaurants, pubs and bars, the latest update to the Lumina Intelligence UK Eating Out Market Report 2021 has found.

SLTA issues call for ‘level playing field’ in pubs and supermarkets duty

Published: 27 October, 2021

The Scottish Licensed Trade Association (SLTA) is calling on the Government to overhaul the alcohol excise duty system and introduce new measures that would create a differential between alcohol sold in pubs and supermarkets.

Over 200 hospitality bosses join call to keep VAT at 12.5%

Published: 25 October, 2021

Over 200 hospitality CEOs have signed a letter urging the Chancellor Rishi Sunak to permanently keep VAT at 12.5%.

August on-trade recovery hits new high

Published: 13 September, 2021

A mix of growing consumer confidence, pent up demand and staycations pushed sales in Britain’s managed restaurants, pubs and bars above pre-pandemic levels in August.