00:00 Do you still go to your local boozer? Stonegate Pub Group, the largest in the UK, has warned
00:06 they're struggling to refinance their £2.2 billion debt pile and it's raised concerns
00:11 over the future of around 4,400 of their branches. The group, which owns brands like Slug & Lettuce
00:17 and Be It One, is now in talks with potential lenders to find new loans to replace debt
00:21 due for repayment next June. Their chief executive is still looking on the bright side though.
00:26 Joining the company from Brewdog last year, David McDowell said "Our performance gives
00:30 me real confidence in the future and excitement in seeing our strategy come to fruition."
00:35 The hospitality industry as a whole has faced months of both rising costs and faltering
00:40 customer demand. The twin pressures leading to swathes of pubs and bars calling last orders
00:45 for the final time. Nearly 400 pubs closed their doors for good in England and Wales
00:49 in the first half of last year, almost as many as the whole of 2022. The costs of running
00:54 a business are up with fewer customers coming through the door also a contributing factor.
00:59 Are you one of those making fewer pub trips and have you switched to supermarket beer
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