For food hall & market operators
Beyond the Counter
The food hall and market industry moves fast. Beyond the Counter is where operators, landlords, and traders come to share what's actually working: a podcast, articles, live events, and an annual industry report.
About
Built for the people running food halls and markets
Operators in this space are often building the playbook as they go. There's no established manual for running a food hall, sourcing the right traders, or working out what the data is telling you.
Beyond the Counter is a free community dedicated to changing that. Through a podcast, a fortnightly newsletter, an annual industry report, and twice-yearly live events, we bring together the people shaping this sector to share what they've learned.
Hosted by me&u, a guest data and CRM platform built for hospitality brands.
Beyond the Counter is a free community dedicated to changing that. Through a podcast, a fortnightly newsletter, an annual industry report, and twice-yearly live events, we bring together the people shaping this sector to share what they've learned.
Hosted by me&u, a guest data and CRM platform built for hospitality brands.
What you get
What you get when you subscribe
Podcast
The Beyond the Counter podcast
Conversations with the operators, landlords, traders, and designers building some of the UK's most interesting food hall and market concepts. Hosted by Simon Anderson, former COO of Market Halls and one of the most experienced voices in the sector.
Past guests include Matt Bigland of Blend Family (the group behind Cambridge Street Collective, named UK's Best Food Hall 2024), construction and design specialists Fred Carr and Mike Sinclair, and Simon Mitchell, CEO of KERB. A new episode every month.
Past guests include Matt Bigland of Blend Family (the group behind Cambridge Street Collective, named UK's Best Food Hall 2024), construction and design specialists Fred Carr and Mike Sinclair, and Simon Mitchell, CEO of KERB. A new episode every month.
Articles
Regular updates from the industry
Simon Anderson and contributors from across the food hall and market world write about what's opening, what's working, where operators are getting it wrong, and what the data shows. Delivered as a fortnightly newsletter.
Recent topics include food hall market growth trends, the economics of scaling an independent model, and insights from the 2026 UK industry report.
Recent topics include food hall market growth trends, the economics of scaling an independent model, and insights from the 2026 UK industry report.
- Food hall market growth trends
- The economics of scaling an independent model
- Insights from the 2026 UK industry report
Subscribe to our newsletter here
Annual report
The me&u Food Hall and Market Industry Report
Built from operator survey responses and me&u ordering data, the report gives food hall and market operators a shared set of benchmarks for the first time. The 2026 edition launched at Beyond the Counter: Live in Manchester. Free to download.
- Market growth and venue format trends
- Average order value and spend per visit, by venue type
- Which cuisines over- and under-perform
- Trading patterns by daypart and day of week
- Fulfilment model comparisons
- What's driving guest satisfaction, and what's damaging it
Get the 2026 MVO report. It's free →
Live events
Beyond the Counter: Live
Twice a year, we take the community offline. Panel sessions on topics operators are actually navigating, a fireside chat with a key industry figure, and time to talk to the people in the room. Everyone who attends works in food halls or markets. Free to attend.
Live events
8th October 2026
TICKETS LIVE SOON
