M&B Pubco Sell Off High Street Pubs To Focus on Food

Pubs and restaurants group Mitchells & Butlers (M&B) has announced plans to sell 333 pubs as it withdraws from the "lower price, drinks-led market".

The pubs are being sold to Stonegate Pub Company,for £373m.

M&B, which owns Harvester and All Bar One, wants to sell off many of its non-core pubs and late-night High Street bars.

Once the sale of the 333 pubs has been completed, the group will have raised £500m from recent asset sales, it said.

The pubs include Scream, High Street Bars & Venues, Town Pubs and Community Pubs.

Following the sales, the group will have 1,580 restaurants and food-led pubs in the UK.

Pub Group Mitchells and Butler Reveal Business Reshape Plans

Midland pubs group Mitchells & Butlers has revealed new plans to reshape the company into a food-led business – months after a boardroom coup was completed.

In a strategic review statement the group said it would expand its food-led mid-market brands Harvester, Toby Carvery, Crown Carveries, Sizzling Pub Co, Premium Country Dining and Vintage Inns.

The moves come as a plan to refocus the firm around its food offer, which includes withdrawing from primarily drinks-led operations and converting into growth brands.

The plans, which follow a 55-day strategy review headed up by new M&B chairman John Lovering, also include developing smaller town centre variants of Harvester and Toby Carvery.