Thursday 22 October: Managed groups hit 2026 growth peak as pubs outpace inflation

September sales rose 2.7% in the sector's best performance this year, though operators warn that a 'punishing cocktail of costs' still threatens profitability. Collated, not reported. Ops Club did not break these stories, the trade press did. This is a signpost to them. Scripted and read by AI from the Ops Club written edition. The stories are the trade press's, the selection is ours. In this briefing Results & trading updates: Hospitality sales growth hits 2026 high in bright September; Domino’s credits new menu ranges for third quarter sales lift; Bob & Berts profits jump to £1.3m after pause in expansion; Graysons Restaurants reports revenue rise to £55.6m; OneGym EBITDA climbs to £3.8m as estate grows; Tiny Rebel losses widen to £897k amid aborted deal costs; Virgin Wines slips to £1.5m loss despite sales growth Acquisitions & investment: Public House Group takes over Notting Hill’s Walmer Castle; Parkdean Resorts plans £11m investment in two holiday parks; Modella Capital withdraws from Poundland bidding New openings & closures: Sandwich Sandwich to open eighth site in Birmingham; The Beefy Boys secures first Welsh site in Cardiff; Noodle & Beer signs for second West End site; Honest Greens lines up Canary Wharf opening; Veeno opens in Northallerton under new franchisees; Tagelo pizza concept secures St John’s Wood debut; Pure Padel to make London debut in Croydon Trends & market data: Hospitality wages fall for the first time in thirty months; Inflation rise triggers £129m business rates threat; Gen Z visit bars more often than the national average; Consumer confidence drops to three-month low Other industry news: Greene King warns of 'punishing cocktail' of rising costs; Blackpool and Wrexham shortlisted for City of Culture; Government weighs removing gas bill standing charges Sources Propel Hospitality Info - Propel Thursday News Briefing Propel Hospitality Info - Domino's hails Chick ‘N’ Dip following third quarter sales growth Restaurant Online - Bob & Berts sees profits rise The Caterer - Public House Group to operate the Walmer Castle pub The Morning Advertiser - Hospitality faces £129m biz rates rise from April 2027 City AM - Consumer confidence tumbles as Healey urged to slow tsunami of costs Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport - Blackpool, Milton Keynes, Sheffield and Wrexham shortlisted for UK City of Culture 2029 The full rundown, with a link to every original story, is at ops-club.com/news/2026-10-22. For longer conversations with the people running the sector, find the Hospitality Ops Club podcast at ops-club.com/podcast. Three things to think about With hospitality wages falling for the first time in three years, are you using this 'equilibrium' to lock in talent, or are you still being priced out of the junior roles that fuel your pipeline? September's 3.5% inflation figure has just baked in a £129m rates hike for 2027 - have you modelled the impact of this on your site-level EBITDA if the Chancellor doesn't blink next week? If 77% of Gen Z now expect your bar to offer 'more than drinks', what specific non-liquid reason did you give them to visit your sites this week?