Today’s news in brief – 21/11/23

The NTIA warned that one-fifth of night-time businesses might collapse by January without government support. Over 70% are barely breaking even or running at a loss. Independent businesses make up over half, with 95% calling for a VAT cut and 78% urging an extension of pandemic-era business rates relief. Michael Kill, NTIA’s CEO, stressed the urgent need for government action to prevent a potential collapse and highlighted the importance of such support in ensuring survival and future growth for these industries.

Liberation Group appointed MD of pubs Jayson Perfect to the board of directors. Perfect, who joined in 2017, expanded his role to overseeing UK managed pubs, the Channel Islands, and the tenanted division. The group saw significant expansion through acquisitions, including Wadsworth’s 21 pubs in 2020 and the merger with Cirrus Inns in 2022. CEO Jonathan Lawson expressed excitement for Perfect’s involvement in the board, while chairman David Kelly praised Perfect’s operational and strategic expertise.

The Upper Place, based in Holloway, London, added The Boil Club, which features seafood boil bags and platters, and a Pad Thai Café that offers curries and spring rolls to its food market line-up. Situated atop Nag’s Head Market on Holloway Road, it’s a hub for diverse cuisine and drinks, offering an array of culinary experiences to its visitors.

Bodega and Ballers Pizza, helmed by Sophie Pascoe and Benito Martinez, has expanded its family-run restaurants to Lakeside, Cardiff. The Bodega’s menu showcases Mediterranean flavours and a chef’s table for live fire cooking. Ballers Pizza, adjacent to Bodega, offers fusion pizzas, building on the success of its Heath outpost. The duo, deeply rooted in Cardiff’s hospitality, brings their expertise from The Priory in Caerleon and Studio Severn, Pascoe’s interior design agency for bars and restaurants.