Leisure Report articles from August 2003

Leisure Report archives from August 2003

Gaming firms to highlight economic benefits of deregulation to government.(Cross-Industry Group for Gaming Deregulation)
August 1, 2003... The Cross-Industry Group for Gaming Deregulation, made up of more than 30 firms from the international gaming industry, has commissioned an independent study designed to show the government what the value of gaming deregulation could be to the...

UK tourism needs to strike balance between investment and affordability.(Inside track)(Brief Article)(Editorial)
August 1, 2003... As the main holiday season swelters on, there will be the usual mixture of gloom and glee throughout the leisure and hospitality industry in the UK. On the one hand, the likes of cinema and tenpin bowling operators will be praying for...

RAL to expand after 40m [pounds sterling] MBO.(News)(RAL Holdings)
August 1, 2003... RAL Holdings, the operator of the Quicksilver chain of gaming centres, the largest in the United Kingdom, hopes to conclude negotiations for a "medium sized" firm in the sector within the next six months. The move is one of a number of...

Travel Inn boss to head De Vere.(News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Carl Leaver, managing director of Whitbread's Travel Inn budget hotel division for the past three years, has been poached by De Vere Group to be its new chief executive. Leaver, 35, who was previously operations director for Marriott...

US performance boosts Wembley.(News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Wembley, the track-based gaming company, said increased revenues from its video lottery terminal operation in the United States helped it achieve better than expected results for the six months to 30 June. The average weekly drop for the...

European cinema admissions grow.(News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Cinema admissions throughout Europe increased by 6.5 million from 2001 to 2002, to reach 1.03 billion. The latest Cinemagoing Europe report from Dodona Research showed that admissions across the continent were 20% higher in 2002 than five...

Aspinall's plans casino chain.(News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Aspinall's, the entrepreneurial owner of a London casino of the same name, is in negotiations over 20 different sites in the United Kingdom for its proposed Aspers chain. The firm, headed by Damian Aspinall, announced that it had acquired...

DLL expects Spanish acquisition to act as launch pad for expansion.(Health & fitness news)(Real Club de Tenis del Turo)
August 1, 2003... David Lloyd Leisure is acquiring a club in Barcelona for 10m [pounds sterling] and has bought a minority stake in another club in the city whose owner will now act as a consultant to drive the firm's expansion throughout Spain. The...

Aludel close to securing funding.(Health & fitness news)(Aludel)
August 1, 2003... Aludel, the operator of health clubs for women, is in negotiations for 4m [pounds sterling] of funding to revamp and grow its estate. The firm, which bought 16 Lady in Leisure Group clubs out of administration in 2001, backed by Bank of...

Holmes Place joins sector's stock exchange exodus.(Health & fitness news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Holmes Place became the latest health and fitness club operator to depart the stock exchange when it delisted on 7 August. The management buyout team, hacked by Permira and Bridgepoint, was concerned SISU Capital was planning to block the...

LA Fitness issues confident update.(Health & fitness news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... LA Fitness, the mid-market fitness club operator, issued an upbeat trading statement and reassured investors that it could fulfil its banking obligations. The firm, which in February issued a profits warning giving rise to concerns that it...

Gunwharf gets club.(Health & fitness news)(Gunwharf Quays)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Gunwharf Quays, the mixed-used regeneration project at Portsmouth Harbour, is to house an independent health club. The Edge has taken a 25 year lease for a 6,700 foot unit above a Tiger Tiger chameleon bar and a Ha Ha! Bar & Canteen,...

Ex-pub man announces women's circuit training concept roll out plan.(Health & fitness news)
August 1, 2003... The owner of the UK fights to a women's fitness and weight-loss concept is in discussions with major pub operators interested in rolling out the brand. Paul Cary, the former operations director of Hobgoblin Group, the pub operator sold to...

Cannons HR director joins Next Generation.(Health & fitness news)(Next Generation Clubs)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Chris Lightfoot, the former human resources director of Cannons Health and Fitness, has become the first head of human resources at Next Generation Clubs. Next Generation, created by David Lloyd and his son, Scott, has ten clubs nationwide...

Crown sells last non-core business.(Health & fitness news)(Sportsbrand Media Group )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Crown Sports approved the disposal of the sale of its last non-core business, Crown Content to Sportsbrand Media Group for A$2.5m (1.02m [pounds sterling]). Sportsbrand is wholly-owned by Chapman Discretionary Trust No 2 of which Jeff Chapman,...

Supplier plans spa franchises for hotels.(Health & fitness news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Aquae Sulis, the supplier of spa treatments, is in talks with luxury hotel operators about setting up franchised spas within their sites. The firm, which opened its first spa last year within the four-star The Ickworth Hotel & Restaurant...

JJB rises on upgrade.(Health & fitness news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Shares in JJB Sports, which runs health and fitness clubs at its larger sportswear superstores, rose 3% after Investec Securities said the company was likely to sell its TJ Hughes discount retailer unit. Investec also upgraded JIB to "buy"....

English football finances on firmer footing for the future, claims report.(Sport news)
August 1, 2003... English football's finances have "turned a corner", according to a new report. The 12th edition of the Deloitte & Touche Annual Review of Football Finance, said that while reduced income from television rights deals will continue to have an...

Aston Villa posts 11.6m [pounds sterling] pre-tax loss.(Sports news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Aston Villa, the Premiership football club, reported an 11.6m [pounds sterling] loss before tax for the year ended 31 May, compared to a 400,000 [pounds sterling] loss for the same period in the previous year. Announcing the results, Doug...

Sky keeps Premiership.(Sport shorts)(Premier League )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The Premier League awarded UK TV rights for live games to Sky for three seasons from 2004. The 1.02bn [pounds sterling] deal, made in four separate packages of live matches, will give Sky 138 games per season, compared with the 106 it...

Wycombe Summit slips into receivership.(Sport shorts)(Wycombe Summit)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... A buyer is being sought for the centre housing England's longest dry ski slope, which has gone into administrative receivership with debts reported to be around 2m [pounds sterling]. Bank of Scotland has called in receiver Hurst Morrison...

FSA launches further probe into Chelsea.(Sport shorts)(Chelsea Village PLC)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The Financial Services Authority is investigating concerns that the market "may have been misled over the true ownership of Chelsea Village plc" prior to the announcement of Roman Abramovich's 140m [pounds sterling] bid. Enquiries into the...

UK attractions show strong recovery after foot and mouth downturn.(Tourism & attractions news)
August 1, 2003... Visits to farms, gardens and countryside attractions increased significantly in 2002, after the previous year's downturns caused by the foot and mouth outbreak. According to the Visits to Visitor Attractions 2002 survey, published by Visit...

Euro Disney confident of restructuring debt.(Tourism & attractions news)
August 1, 2003... Euro Disney, the owner of the Disneyland Paris theme park, was confident its lenders would support financial restructuring of the company after it admitted it was in breach of financial conditions governing the debts it owes creditor banks. ...

Visits down, spend up at Deep Sea.(Tourism & attractions news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Visitor numbers to the two aquaria owned by Deep Sea Leisure dropped by 13.6% in the six months to 30 April, compared to the same period the previous year, but spend per capita rose 18% to 10.66 [pounds sterling]. Stuart Farley, the...

McCulloch plans new budget chain.(Tourism & attractions news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Ken McCulloch, the founder of Malmaison, announced plans for his "super budget" hotel chain in the UK. McCulloch is negotiating for at least eight sites for the new Dakota brand. Work has begun on the first, which opens at the Sherwood...

Olympic architects to begin masterplan for massive East London regeneration.(Property & development news)(London Development Agency )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The London Development Agency announced the selected bidder to prepare its masterplan for the London's bid for the 2012 Olympics. The team, led by EDAW, in partnership with HOK Sport, Foreign Office Architects and Allies and Morrison, was...

New life for King Alfred.(Property & development news)(Karis ING )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Detailed plans for the redevelopment of the former King Alfred Leisure Centre in Brighton are to be worked up by Karis ING, a joint partnership between Karis Developments and ING Real Estate Development UK, selected to take the scheme forward...

Go-ahead for Quartermile Edinburgh development.(Property & development news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Southside Capital has received detailed planning permission from Edinburgh City Council for Quartermile Edinburgh, the 400m [pounds sterling] redevelopment of the city's former Royal Infirmary. However, this is subject to approval from the...

Blueprint for Cowes.(Property & development news)(Isle of Wight Council )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The Isle of Wight Council has adopted a strategic framework for the future development of the Cowes area in a bid to boost tourism and leisure facilities on the island. Cowes Waterfront--investing in the Medina Valley was put together by...

300m [pounds sterling] Salford project wins outline consent.(Property & development news)(Valley & Vale Properties )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Valley & Vale Properties has been given the go "ahead for a 300m [pounds sterling] mixed-use development at Middlewood Locks in Salford. Now that the company has won outline consent for the scheme, it hopes to submit a detailed planning...

Assembly approves plans for Cardiff.(Property & development news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Plans for a 315m [pounds sterling] mixed-use development in the centre of Cardiff, have been given the go-ahead by the National Assembly of Wales. The 750,000 square foot project is a joint development between Land Securities and Capital...

Parents' Panel slams children's menus.(Eating & drinking news)(Yellow River Cafe)
August 1, 2003... The Yellow River Care, Noble House's Chinese casual dining chain, has come out top in a survey of children's menus, with Mitchells & Butlers' Browns chain next and Wagamama third. However, Punch Tavern's Wacky Warehouse chain, JD...

McDonald's sales, and costs, rise.(Eating & drinking news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... McDonald's reported an 11% increase in sales for the second quarter, crediting what it called "a dramatic new difference in service, taste and relevance". The rise was the company's highest for five years. However, higher costs pushed down...

First UK site for Krispy Kreme.(Eating & drinking news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Krispy Kreme, the American doughnut-and-coffee chain, will open its debut UK outlet, the first of 25, in Harrods department store in London in October.

Papa John's sales fall.(Eating & drinking news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Papa John's, the American pizza giant which runs Perfect Pizza restaurants in the UK, said revenues for the second quarter were down 4.3% to $226.5m, and it expected full-year sales to be down between 4% and 6%. For the complete first...

Ask to trial burger outlets.(Eating & drinking news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Ask Central, the pizza restaurant operator, is trialling a small chain of burger outlets, with the first one due to open later this month in Wimbledon, South London. Three outlets are planned for the new concept to begin with, and the...

Coffee shops to get new look.(Eating & drinking news)(Sogafredo Zanetti Espresso)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The first of a planned chain of 100 authentic Italian-style coffee shops serving Italian beer, wine and cocktails from late in the morning along side the espressos and cappuccinos has just opened in London. Sogafredo Zanetti Espresso, which...

Ster Century joins VC-owned cinema chains after 25m [pounds sterling] Inflexion deal.(Cinema & entertainment news)
August 1, 2003... Inflexion Private Equity has become the latest in a run of venture capital firms hoping to cash in on the maturing UK multiplex market. The company backed the purchase of Ster Century's six UK sites and one in Ireland by Aurora Holdings,...

EasyCinema welcomes OFT review.(Cinema & entertainment news)(EasyCinema)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... EasyCinema, the operator of the low-cost multiplex in Milton Keynes, welcomed the Office of Fair Trading's announcement that it is to review the film distribution industry in the UK. The Film Orders, introduced in 1983 and 1994 rafter...

Segal to leave Odeon to 'seek new challenges'.(Cinema & entertainment news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Odeon, the UK's largest cinema operator, has announced that Richard Segal, the company's chief executive, will leave at the end of summer. Segal has spent seven years at Odeon and led the Cinven-backed buyout of the firm from the Rank...

UKFC rolls digital screen plan.(Cinema & entertainment news)(UK Film Council)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The UK Film Council's Lottery-funded Distribution and Exhibition Fund is calling on the cinema and film industry to come together to decide how to set up and run 250 digital screens at 150 cinemas around the country. The 13m [pounds...

Isle of Capri moves closer to Coventry.(Betting & gaming news)(Arena Coventry)
August 1, 2003... Plans for the UK debut of Isle of Capri Casinos, the casino operator from the United States, are expected to take a step forward shortly with the appointment of a contractor for the 60m [pounds sterling] Coventry Arena scheme that it will be...

MBO for spread-bet firm.(Betting & gaming news)(EVE Capital Partners)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... IG Group, the financial and sporting spread-betting firm, agreed to a 143m [pounds sterling] management buyout backed by EVE Capital Partners, the private equity company. IGGHL is the bid vehicle for the buy out by IG's executive...

Betinternet.com posts maiden profit after cost cuts.(Betting & gaming news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Betinternet.com, the online gaming group reported its maiden group operating profit, of 100,443 [pounds sterling], for the year to 1 June. The modest figure compared to a loss of 1.69m [pounds sterling] in the previous year and followed a...

Sky hopes new iTV policy will boost business.(Betting & gaming news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Sky, the broadcasting giant, hopes more companies will be encourage to offer games on its interactive television platform after it introduced a policy to ensure services operate within the law. The firm's SSSL division, which enables...

Betfair joins Levy Committee.(Betting & gaming news)(Association of British Bookmakers)(National Association of Bookmakers )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The Bookmakers' Committee, which recommends the annual Levy scheme to the Levy Board, has been changed to include representation from the betting exchange sector. Betfair, the UK's largest betting exchange operator, now has a seat on the...

London Clubs 'well placed' for UK deregulation.(Betting & gaming news)
August 1, 2003... London Clubs International, the casino operator, said its experience of running large numbers of high pay-out slot machines in its failed Aladdin casino joint venture in Las Vegas, has put it in good stead for deregulation in the IN gaming...

Sportingbet confident for future after strong results.(Betting & gaming news)
August 1, 2003... Sportingbet, the online gambling group, posted an improved performance for the year and reported that trading for the first three months of its current financial year is continuing to show growth. In the year to 31 March, Sportingbet's...

MPs' report calling for fewer bars attacked for ignoring needs of hospitality businesses.(Industry news)(Business in Sport and Leisure)
August 1, 2003... Business in Sport and Leisure, the organisation that represents more than 100 companies in the leisure, sport and hospitality sectors, has attacked a report by a committee of MPs which called for fewer town centre bars. BISL said the...

Government won't return our calls, complains Smoking Charter group.(Industry news)(Charter Group)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The Charter Group has called on the government to speak to it and clarify its position on the issue of smoking in pubs. Nick Bish, the chairman of the Charter Group, which represents over 100,000 pubs, clubs, hotels and restaurants, said:...

Southampton venues launch exclusion scheme.(Industry news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Licensees and police in Southampton are joining forces to launch a new exclusion order scheme called Licensing Link. The scheme will affect any person arrested at licensed promises and subsequently convicted of any violent offence. ...

Government publishes syllabus for personal licence.(Industry news)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The government has now published the syllabus for the qualification all new holders of a personal licence to run a pub or bar will need under the Licensing Act 2003. Anyone who currently holds a justices' licence will be able to apply for...

Track and yield: Nigel Potter talks to Mel Flaherty about Wembley's future as a track-based gaming business.(Profile)
August 1, 2003... Nigel Potter is disappointed, It's the day after Wembley, the track-based gaming firm he runs as chief executive officer, reported fairly strong interim figures. But despite this good news, the share price still closed 18.5p down, to 675p. ...

Service with more than a smile: David Minton says UK fitness operators could learn a lot from their Japanese counterparts.(Personal view--the Japanese fitness industry)(Konami Sports Corporation)
August 1, 2003... Did you know that geisha girls study the same 1,000 year old posture training as a martial arts master? I discovered that both need to achieve the same poise, movement and perfect balance. In fact, Japan, as a whole, seems to have...

Long-term short-break benefits: Alex Tanner examines the continuing resurgence of the UK holiday parks market.(Sector update--holiday parks)
August 1, 2003... Foot and mouth, seasonal flooding, 9/11, war... considering all these factors that have hit the headlines over the last few years one could be forgiven for assuming that the UK holiday parks sector had, like most other forms of tourism in...

Mine for the takings: Gary Loveman explains how data mining helps Harrah's target, and keep, its best customers.(Business sense--mining and using customer data)
August 1, 2003... It's a Friday night on the Las Vegas Strip, and all of the neighbours are making spectacles of themselves. The $750m Mirage boasts a Vesuvian volcano that erupts loudly every. 15 minutes. Next door, at Treasure Island, a faux British frigate...

Leisure Report LR index leisure stockwatch August 2003.(Sharewatch & diary dates)
August 1, 2003... Holmes Place and PizzaExpress have both left the stock exchange since the last issue of Leisure Report, joining the growing number of firms in the leisure industry that have got out of the public arena in favour of ownership by private equity...

Diary dates.(Sharewatch & diary dates)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
August 1, 2003... September Event 3rd Annual IHRSA/Fitness BRASIL 2003 Date 11-13 Location See Paulo, Brazil Description Latin American fitness industry conference Contact www.ihrsa.org Event EuroMoney London International Hotel...