Today’s news in brief – 13/08/24

Nationwide riots have caused a 10% drop in sales as businesses closed and customers stayed away, according to CGA by NIQ. The impact on sales in towns where rumoured protests were planned to take place was as high as 40%, with businesses reporting footfall down by as much as 75%.

Soho House total revenues in Q2 rose 5.5% YoY to $305.1m (£238.5m). It comes as total Soho House members grew to 204,028 from 198,021 in the first quarter, and 16% year-over-year. The Soho House membership waitlist also sits at roughly 111,000, which is an all-time high for the group. However, RevPAR across the group was flat year-over-year.

Total drinks sales rose 7% for the week to 3 August due to a heatwave. On 28 and 29 July, drinks sales increased by 17% and 19% respectively compared with the same period in 2023. However, sales performance cooled off alongside the weather with sales down 0.5% on 2 August and 1.7% on 3 August.

Chef Adam Handling has appointed Andrew Tuck as senior sous chef at The Tartan Fox in Cornwall, which just opened in July.  A rising star on the British food scene, Tuck has also featured on Rick Stein’s Cornwall Series and competed on the 2023 and 2024 series of ‘Great British Menu’, representing the Southeast.