News round-up

Discounting stand pays off for Regent Inns

A refusal to discount hit like-for-like sales at bar operator Regent Inns during the six months to 4 January. The group's Australian-themed Walkabout bars saw like-for-like sales fall by 2.8% and by 4.1% at its Bar Risa/Jongleurs comedy bars.

But the refusal to discount led to improved profit margins - up 1% at Walkabout and 3.7% at Bar Risa/Jongleurs.

Six new Walkabouts opened during the period, taking the total to 38 and helping to lift sales by 47.1% to £34.1m. Average weekly sales per venue were £44,700.

At Bar Risa/Jongleurs sales increased by 44.3% to £13.4m, with average weekly sales per bar rising from 11.1% to £45,700. Two new Bar Risas were opened during the period, taking the total to 15.

Turnover for the group as a whole fell by 3% to £57.5m during the period, compared with £59.3m a year earlier. Pre-tax profit rose to £6.6m, up from £4.8m last year.

Aramark opens supermarket

The offshore division of Aramark has opened a supermarket in Equatorial Guinea to provide food supplies for its workers and the local community.

Aramark's operations manager Barclay Massie said the £140,000 Superaramarket is already turning over £70,000 a month.

Aramark has projects and contracts in the country worth £5m. The supermarket project is part of the company's worldwide annual community development programme.

Tatler restaurant awards
Society magazine Tatler has just published its 2003 restaurant guide. It gave its best kitchen award to the Lecture Room and Library at Sketch, London, while the best out-of-town restaurant award went to L'Ortolan in Shinfield, Berkshire. The restaurant of the year was Fifteen, London.

Fruitful move
Raspberry Ice, the catering and event company set up by Colette Challis and Tony Kerr in July, has moved into a £75,000 purpose-built central production unit in Loughton, Essex. The new premises will enable the company to provide sit-down dinners for up to 600 guests and buffets for up to 1,000.

Challis, former deputy general manager of Turtle Soup, the outside catering division of Chester Boyd, says she expects the company to turn over £150,000 in its first year.

£131k for Crawford
Guy Crawford, former managing director of Macdonald Hotels, received a £131,000 pay-off, the company's annual report revealed last week. Crawford resigned from his position last March after the successful integration of the Heritage chain, purchased from Compass in 2001, into the Macdonald group.

Despite group pre-tax profits rising only 5% for the year ending 3 October (excluding gains made on the sale of hotels during the year), chief executive Donald Macdonald received a salary rise of 16.3% to £443,000, up from £381,000 in 2001. This included £73,000 in lieu of pension payments.

Help for disabled
The North West Tourist Board has revised its Welcome All training programme in line with the Disability Discrimination Act.

The one-day course is designed to help leisure businesses to provide facilities and services for people with disabilities - and to comply with the new law. Details on 01942 821 222.

In Brief

British Egg producers fear new legislation
New European legislation is set to saddle small egg producers with extra costs when new demands for more precise egg labelling come into play next January.

The directive will require farmers to label eggs by type and origin, using an inkjet printer that costs around £5,000. Though the majority of larger producers will be able to absorb the cost, the extra expense will be a cause for concern among smaller producers.

Riots in Cambodia
Thai Airways flights to Cambodia will remain suspended until 14 February after anti-Thai rioters attacked the Thai embassy and Thai businesses. Several hotels in Phnom Penh are Thai-owned and at least three were destroyed by looters. The four-star, 75-bedroom Royal Phnom Penh hotel is closed after rioters attacked the property, smashing windows and setting rooms on fire. Despite estimates of around $23.41m (£14.5m) damage to Thai businesses, a spokesperson for the InterContinental in Phnom Penh played down the episode.