News

Franchise business to roll out 75 Starbucks drive-throughs

A franchise business is set to open 75 Starbucks drive-through restaurants with the support of a £21m funding package from HSBC UK. The Magic Bean Co, a Starbucks national license partner, will open the 75 locations over the next five years, Insider Media has reported. Each of the coffee shops will offer electric vehicle charging, after The Magic Bean Co was awarded Starbucks’ exclusive National Electric Vehicle Channel License Agreement. Of the new sites, four have already opened and a further four sites are scheduled to open by the end of the year, including Port Talbot and Swindon and Netherton in September, followed by Lichfield in November. The Magic Bean Co anticipates that its turnover will more than double over the five-year period, growing from £34m to £68m. Jamie Evans, finance director at The Magic Bean Co, said: “HSBC UK has been with us from the very beginning, supporting us from the opening of our first Starbucks drive-thru in Cardiff in 2014 through to establishing our first revolving credit facility, which helped us expand from 19 sites to the 47 we operate today. This latest funding will support the continued rollout of our Starbucks drive-thru portfolio, enabling us to serve […]

Deals

Flight Club to open 17th UK venue in Exeter

Red Engine, the hospitality group behind the Flight Club and Electric Shuffle concepts, is set to open a new Flight Club venue in Exeter. The darts-themed competitive socialising operator’s new venue will be its 17th in the UK and its second in the South West, joining Flight Club Bristol which opened in 2021. The concept will occupy the former Revolution site on Queen Street, 500 feet from Exeter Central Station. Spanning 11,916 sq ft across two floors, Flight Club Exeter will feature the operator’s signature style, which looks to combine the feel of a traditional pub with a fairground twist. This comes as Red Engine prepares to open five additional international venues, bringing its global portfolio to 48 locations. Steve Moore, CEO and co-founder of Red Engine, said, “Hitting 1 billion darts thrown earlier this year was a huge milestone, and Exeter is where Flight Club’s next chapter starts. Five years since we opened in Bristol, we’re excited to be back in the Southwest, bringing Social Darts to the heart of Exeter this Winter.”

Requirements

Costa Coffee brews up further expansion

Costa Coffee has unveiled its latest property requirements as it looks to continue its expansion across England, Scotland, and Wales. The coffee shop chain, working with its long-standing partner Savills, is looking to open new locations in retail parks and shopping centres, as well as on high streets and within travel locations. Costa Coffee is also looking to open drive-through units in out-of-town retail locations. Ideal units will range in size between 1,250 sq ft and 2,200 sq ft and be located adjacent to foodstores, retail warehousing, and leisure space. Within retail parks, Costa is seeking units ranging between 1,500 sq ft and 2,500 sq ft in size with external seating. Freestanding or in-line units will be considered, with nearby car parking a necessity. Ideal units will be situated in out-of-town locations with significant traffic flow, adjacent to foodstores, and retail and leisure clusters. In high street and shopping centre destinations, Costa is looking for units between 1,500 sq ft and 2,500 sq ft with outside seating. Locations such as universities, hospitals, and leisure destinations will also be considered. The operator is also looking to open new sites within travel locations such as transport hubs and train stations with significant […]

Insights

The rise of ‘treatonomics’: how changing spending patterns are affecting retail destinations

Times of economic difficulty and reduced consumer confidence have traditionally seen consumers tighten their purse strings, occasionally saving up for a larger purchase. But a recent shift in spending patterns suggests that shoppers are now shunning big-ticket purchases in favour of smaller, less expensive products or experiences. This concept, dubbed ‘treatonomics’, has been observed by Alex Petit, head of research and insights at Global Mutual, within the group’s portfolio of outlet shopping centres. “What we’ve seen is that cost-of-living crisis, combined with people wanting to keep on treating themselves, means that people are suddenly treating themselves on much smaller price points. That’s what we’re seeing with treatonomics”, she tells Completely Retail News. Data from the ONS found that despite increasing costs, sales volumes have remained broadly flat against pre-pandemic levels. This implies a shift towards consumers spending money less often, but instead choosing to make select purchases of higher values. “People are being very considered”, says Petit, “I think it comes from the pandemic as well, when we were all locked at home and we were deprived of a lot of things. People now have a slightly different outlook on life as there’s this hang-up psychologically, from us not being […]

Advice

Turn lease events from growing pains into commercial gains

By Simon Matley, director for dilapidations and occupier services at TFT After a period of acquisition, a large commercial retail portfolio can become either a major liability or a powerful cost saver for retailers who need every advantage they can get in a challenging consumer market. For national multiples and high street brands, often with sizeable portfolios numbering in the hundreds of units, or for smaller regional operations that are growing at speed, flexibility and control are hugely important. Brands today are adapting their portfolios in light of changing consumer behaviour and omni-channel retailing, and this is shaped by the increasingly sophisticated data capture that allows them to better understand stock, fulfilment, customer behaviour, and operations. For many who have been acquiring premises over the past 10 years, they will almost certainly find that data allows them to be more efficient in the space they need, not least because of the growth of last mile logistics and on demand deliveries which enables occupiers to be nimble in how they use their spaces. Whether they operate on the high street, in retail parks or rely on distribution centres, retailers want to scale fast, explore new territory and snap up the right […]

News

Vedra Property Group appoints director of retail advisory

Vedra Property Group has appointed Antonia Gladwin as director of retail advisory services, effective from September. She joins the real estate advisory firm from Howden’s, where she held the role of property director. Gladwin brings a wealth of experience to the role, having also held positions at senior roles at Amazon and Arcadia. In addition, Vedra has also appointed Douglas Henderson-Pratt as a graduate surveyor, who has previously gained early industry experience through internships at Culverwell and Ryden. In his new position, he will support both the retail advisory and capital markets teams as the group looks to expand its platform. Vedra said the appointments strengthen its retail advisory capability and add further support across its capital markets activity. Chris Harris, joint managing director of Vedra Group, said: “I am delighted to welcome Antonia and Douglas to Vedra Group. Their appointments strengthen our ability to deliver high-quality retail advisory and capital markets support as we continue to grow the business with a clear focus on client service and value.” Antonia Gladwin added: “I am excited to be joining Vedra at an important stage in its growth and look forward to helping develop and grow the firm’s current Retail Advisory offer […]