Stonegate Pub Company
Stonegate Pub Company is one of the UK's largest pub companies with over 700 sites.[1] It is owned by TDR Capital. The head office is based in Luton, UK, and the company is registered in the Cayman Islands.[2]
 | |
| Industry | Hospitality |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Caymon Island, New Head Office Solihull |
Key people | Ian Payne MBE (Chairman)
Simon Longbottom (CEO) David Ross (CFO) |
| Brands | Scream Slug & Lettuce Tattershall Castle Henry's Café Bar Yates's Missoula Social Squirrel Flares & Reflex Popworld The Living Room Retro Sports Bar & Grill Walkabout Be at one Fever Bars |
| Owner | TDR Capital |
| Website | www |
History
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The company was formed in 2010 by private equity firm TDR Capital, after it purchased 333 pubs from Mitchells & Butlers.[3] Originally trading from rented offices near Birmingham airport it then moved its operations office to Capability Green in Luton in June 2011 when Stonegate bought the Town & City Pub Company who were in receivership, creating the largest privately held managed pub operator in the UK and acquiring the Yates's and Slug and Lettuce brands in the process.[4]
In August 2013, Stonegate acquired thirteen Living Room sites from Premium Bars & Restaurants. In June 2015, a further fifteen sites were acquired from Scottish pub, bar and hotel operator, Maclay Inns, and later that same year Stonegate acquired 53 pubs from Tattershall Castle Group (TCG) including the Henry's Café Bar and Tattershall Castle brands.[5]
In January 2016 the company began updating former TCG estate pubs and rebranding many of the venues to Slug & Lettuce. Later that year, Stonegate exchanged on a package of ten JD Wetherspoon pubs and acquired Walkabout owner Intertain, adding a further 30 sites to its portfolio.[5]
In 2017 the company acquired the Sports Bar & Grill concept (2017), and in 2018, Be At One and fifteen Novus Leisure sites.[5]
In January 2019, Stonegate acquired Bar Fever Ltd (Fever Bars) – 32 venues: 29 bars, including Fever Boutique, Zinc and Moo Moo, as well as three Bierkellar Bavarian pubs and a further six sites from Novus Leisure.[5]
Following the acquisition of Ei Group on 3rd March 2020 for £1.27bn, Stonegate Pub Company became the largest pub company in the UK.[6] It has 1270 sites within the managed division and 3457 leased and tenanted businesses.[7]
During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, Stonegate furloughed 16,500 workers under a UK job retention program. This drew negative attention due to the company's Cayman Islands registration. A Stonegate spokesperson said "Last year Stonegate paid over £300m in tax in the UK. As a UK business, fully paying UK tax, we have every right to access government assistance".[2]
Brands
Stonegate's managed pubs division is split into branded and traditional (unbranded) pubs. Branded pubs are Slug & Lettuce, Walkabout, Be At One,[8] and venues (including Popworld and Fever.)[9]
See also
References
- bighospitality.co.uk. "Deal to create UK's largest pub company cleared to go ahead". bighospitality.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- Neate, Rupert (27 April 2020). "Sunak rejects church leaders' call to bar tax-haven firms from bailouts". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- "M&B sells 333 pubs to TDR Capital". Morning Advertiser. 20 August 2010. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
- "Stonegate-and-Town-City-pub-companies-merge". Publican's Morning Advertiser. 22 June 2011. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
- morningadvertiser.co.uk. "Stonegate's biggest deals: a timeline of the pubco". morningadvertiser.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- Ramnarayan, Abhinav (2020-06-23). "Slug and Lettuce owner plans debt issue as UK pubs set to reopen - sources". Reuters. Retrieved 2020-07-20.
- morningadvertiser.co.uk. "Stonegate/Ei deal approved by CMA". morningadvertiser.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- "Stonegate to acquire Be At One". The Caterer. 2018-07-23. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- "Stonegate continues to invest in roll-out of Popworld brand". Bar Magazine. 2018-02-05. Retrieved 2020-06-25.