Concept & brand
Positioning, naming, narrative and design direction for venues that need a reason to exist.
Hospitality consultancy · Est. 2011
We build hospitality businesses that people talk about — and that make money.
The Black Circle Group is a hospitality consultancy for hotels, restaurants, bars, clubs and venues. Concept to opening, turnaround to scale — with operators who have run the floor, not just the spreadsheet.
- 180+
- Venues advised
- £240m
- Revenue under advisory
- 6.4pts
- Average EBITDA uplift
- 15 yrs
- Advising operators
What we do
Six disciplines, one commercial outcome
Hospitality fails at the joins — a beautiful room with the wrong menu, a great team on a broken rota. We work across the whole operation so the parts pull in the same direction.
Profit & performance
Menu engineering, pricing architecture, labour models and cost control that protect margin.
Food & beverage
Kitchen design, menu development, supply chain and beverage programmes built to sell.
People & culture
Recruitment, structure, training academies and retention strategies for service teams.
Guest experience
Service choreography, sequence of service, ambience, music, lighting and hospitality standards.
Openings & growth
Pre-opening programmes, critical path planning, site selection and multi-site roll-out.
The difference
Operators first, consultants second
Every partner at The Black Circle Group has held a general manager, executive chef or operations director role. We write plans we would be happy to be handed on a Friday night service.
- Diagnostics grounded in real P&L, rota and till data
- Recommendations sequenced by payback, not preference
- On-site implementation support, not a PDF and a handshake
- Transparent fees with performance-linked options
Virtual consultancy
Advice on video, at any date and time
Every discipline we offer can be discussed virtually — booked around your service pattern and shown in your own time zone. Start with a free 30-minute introductory call, then £179 an hour for discussion-based advice on the call. Work that needs offline progress is separate project work at £399 a day.
Free 30-minute intro
A no-obligation video or phone call to understand the venue and where the opportunity sits.
Any date and time
Early mornings, late evenings and weekends — availability in your local time zone.
£179 per hour — talk only
Discussion-based advice on the call with a short written summary. Offline project work is quoted separately at £399 a day.
Questions
Hospitality consultancy, answered
The things owners and operators ask us before the first meeting.
What does a hospitality consultancy actually do?
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We work alongside owners and operators to improve commercial performance — covering concept and brand, menu engineering, operating models, cost control, recruitment and training, technology, and guest experience. Engagements range from a two-week diagnostic to multi-year operational partnerships.
How quickly can you improve profitability?
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Most venues see measurable margin improvement within 60–90 days, typically through menu and pricing architecture, labour scheduling, purchasing consolidation and waste reduction. Structural change to brand or format takes longer.
Do you work with independent operators as well as groups?
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Yes. We support single-site independents, growing multi-site groups, hotel owners, private members' clubs and investors carrying out due diligence on hospitality assets.
Which sectors do you specialise in?
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Hotels and resorts, restaurants, bars and nightlife, cafés and coffee, private members' clubs, events and catering, stadium and leisure venues, and food halls.
Let's talk about your venue's next chapter
A free 30-minute virtual consultation, held at any date and time that suits you — in your own time zone. After that, video consultancy is £179 an hour for discussion-based advice; offline project work is £399 a day.