Restaurant sector boom forecast for 2015

THE North will be “at the centre of a food revolution” next year, according to research from accountancy group BDO.

According to its Restaurants & Bars Report, Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds will be the top destinations for new restaurant concepts, with crowdfunding and investment from private equity backers supporting new openings.

BDO said smokehouses and barbecue concepts are expected to do well in 2015, following the success of Red’s True Barbecue and Piper’s £6m investment in Hickory’s Smokehouse.

The London steak restaurant Hawksmoor is due to open in Manchester in 2015 along with London-based MeatLiquor, the Mexican Wahaca and the Spanish Iberica.

Kieran Lawton, M&A director at BDO in Manchester, said: “Deal activity in the restaurants and bars sector has been buoyant during the last 12 months. For 2015, there are no signs of this slowing down, especially in Northern cities which are increasingly seen as the go-to destinations for growth outside of London.

“Crowd funding is likely to have a boom period this year and private equity appetite will continue to be rife for scalable concepts with roll-out strategies.”

He added: “National operators can see the potential that Northern cities already have to offer. With calls by operators for relaxed planning laws on King Street to allow for licenced-leisure use, as well as the redevelopment of The Triangle as a food destination, we can expect an exciting year of expansion and innovation for the region’s restaurant sector.”