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Brown bread: Cafe chain in administration EXCLUSIVE
LAURA MCGUIRE
PUMPED UP SUPERMARKETS DID JACK UP FUEL MARGINS, SAYS COMPETITION REGULATOR
GUY TAYLOR SUPERMARKETS faced political pressure last night after the competition watchdog found they pumped up fuel prices last year. Following a year-long investigation, the watchdog yesterday said that average supermarket fuel margins rose by 6p per litre between 2019 and 2022, with £900m syphoned out of customers’ pockets in total. The CMA are calling for a plan to help drivers get fairer prices for fuel, including a
new fuel monitoring body to “hold industry to account” and legislation to make fuel retailers provide up to date data on pricing. Under the new ‘fuel finder’ scheme, customers would be able to see varying pump prices at different sites – through third party apps – to help them find cheaper fuel. The long-awaited announcement follows weeks of scrutiny, after the CMA announced in May that it would probe whether a “failure in competition” between supermarkets was subjecting
Brits to high prices at the pumps. The watchdog previously said that it was concerned by a “lack of transparency” from supermarkets when cooperating with the investigation and yesterday fined Asda £60,000 for failing to provide relevant information when required. The chair of the Commons’ business select committee, Darren Jones MP, said the price hikes were “unacceptable” whilst opposition parties and Penny Mordaunt MP, the Conservative leader of the house, also backed the CMA’s findings.
Asda said the report had confirmed that “the presence of an Asda petrol station in a local area keeps prices down for all motorists” whilst Morrisons said the firm remained “extremely competitive on fuel pricing and although margins have increase, they remain very low” and that the CMA did not take into account the cost of running a fuel business, including payroll and energy, in their calculations. The AA claimed drivers have been “convinced” that prices spike when wholesale prices increase but do not come down as quickly on the other side.
THE OPERATOR of Le Pain Quotidien’s UK stores has fallen into administration, City A.M. can reveal. The firm collapsed at the back end of last week, with only one store – owned by a different company and based in St Pancras station – remaining open. The future of the seven closed stores appears gloomy. Administrators Kroll said the firm had been hit by changing workpatterns. “Pressures on parts of the hospitality and casual dining sector have been well highlighted. Brunchco UK Limited which is predominantly located in London has suffered from reduced revenues as a result of decreased footfall in the capital, high rents and increased wage costs,” Sarah Rayment, global co-head of restructuring at Kroll, told City A.M. “As part of the next steps of the insolvency, we will be looking to realise value from the company’s leasehold interests and other assets,” she added.
Pint of the black stuff, but hold the booze: Diageo ups 0.0 production JAMES SILVER DIAGEO is set to almost triple production of its non-alcoholic Guinness after a surge in the booze-free black stuff’s popularity. The drinks giant has invested just north of £20m in a new
facility at its flagship St James’s Gate brewery in Dublin to meet an increased demand for nonalcoholic stout. ‘Guinness 0.0’ is now the bestselling non-alcoholic beer in four-pack format on the island of Ireland and in Great Britain, Diageo said.
The spike in demand comes amid increased interest in nonalcoholic options, with Diageo estimating its non-alcoholic Guinness will make up 10 per cent of all on-trade sales in the coming years. Yesterday, Tesco confirmed that sales of so-called ‘no and
low’ beers were 25 per cent higher in June than at the start of the year as more and more Brits trade in the buzz – and the hangover – for the more sensible option this summer. UK-based non-alcoholic beer brand Lucky Saint has even opened its own London pub.
“This expansion in production capacity at St James’s Gate is a testament to the quality of Guinness 0.0 and the growth of the non-alcoholic category as consumers look for more choice on different occasions,” said Barry O’Sullivan, Diageo Ireland’s managing director.
INSIDE LENDINVEST SECURES £500M BOOST P3 INSURERS FAILING CUSTOMERS, SAYS FCA P5 BANKS TOLD TO PASS ON SAVINGS RATES P12 MARKETS P13 OPINION P14-P15