England’s Euro 2024 run boosts bar group’s sales
Bar group, Arc Inspirations, says that the Euro 2024 football finals has boosted sales at its sports bar brand BOX.
On the seven days that England played, including the match against Spain in last Sunday’s final, the five BOX-branded venues, in Headingley, Leeds city centre, Manchester, Birmingham and Nottingham, saw sales jump more than 300%. Total company sales, including Banyan and Manahatta – doubled, with group like-for-like sales growth of 79%.
For the tournament as a whole – the five-week period to Sunday 14th of July – BOX saw sales jump more than 76%, with like-for-like sales ahead 41.4%, while on the day of the final, 14th July, like-for-like sales at BOX were up tenfold (1006%)
Arc Inspirations CEO, Martin Wolstencroft said: “These numbers graphically illustrate the power of world-class sport when combined with world-class premium hospitality. Our BOX bars have been specifically designed to host the very best matchday experiences – possibly only bettered by being in the stadium itself – and as a result people flocked to our venues in record numbers to enjoy the Euros, and England’s run to the final, in the perfect setting.
“The tournament delivered the boost that we’d all been hoping for in the hospitality sector. It’s one thing getting people through the door, it’s another to make sure they have a great time, and our teams were outstanding. I have no doubt that the amazing experiences they helped to deliver will be a massive reason why customers come back to our bars for the next big sporting events.”
Earlier this year, Arc secured £7m in extra funding to accelerate its expansion across the UK, with a £4m loan from its banking partner, HSBC UK, alongside a £3m equity injection from its shareholders, including BGF which has backed the business since 2022. With ambitions to deliver at least four new openings per year over the next five years, the capital will support Arc’s continued growth plans, and also fund a major programme of refurbishments.
Arc is set to open three new sites – BOX Sheffield, and Manahatta Edinburgh and Manahatta Nottingham – this autumn, as well as eyeing further launches in London, Liverpool and Cardiff in the near future.
