In October 2002, the leisure group Six Continents PLC (Six Continents) announced its plans to divide its core businesses between two new, highly focused, listed companies. The UKbased pubs and restaurants business, which owns brands such as O’Neills, Harvester, Browns and All Bar One, was to be demerged to form a retail pub and restaurant company. The international hotels business (which would also retain the soft drinks business, Britvic) would continue to own, manage and franchise leading global hotel brands such as InterContinental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn.
