Record figures at Greene King despite Scottish smoking slip

Belhaven's like-for-like sales slip in its 300-odd pubs was the only blot on another sparkling set of "record results" from Greene King this week.

But the 2.8% dip in l-f-ls, and a 2.6% overall fall in retail sales for the 24 weeks, was set against an 8% growth in profit for Belhaven, which Greene King insisted, was a better performance than it expected.

"We're quite pleased with Scotland," said chief executive Rooney Anand. "We're ahead of where we thought we'd be, and our Greene King sales are also ahead of internal expectations."

Overall, Greene King's sales for the 24 weeks to 15 October were up 16% to £419m, and pre-tax profits up 20% to £67m. Operating profit margins rose 0.1% to 24.1%.

In David Elliott's Pub Partners division of 1,364

tenanted and leased pubs, operating profit per pub rose 5%, on like-for-like sales up 1%. Overall, operating profit rose 11% to £33m, and operating margins were up 3.1 percentage points to 45.8%.

"These are challenging times," said Anand. "But we're aiming to help our licensees with their energy costs through our "Share and Save" scheme, which can add 10% to their bottom line."

Anand said Greene King would not be chasing other pub operators down the lease route. "Although 20% of our estate is leased, and we're always keen to talk to entrepreneurs, we think the tenancy model works best for us," he said. "We can remember the rise in defaulters and bad debts in the early '90s, and we prefer to concentrate on

longevity. Which also means we don't want to max out on rent levels."

At Mark Angela's Pub Company managed division, sales were down 1% to £241m following 16 transfers to Pub Partners, but operating

profits were up 3% to £52m and operating profit margins rose 0.9% to 21.5%.

Justin Adams' brewing division drove profits up 2% to £10m, despite sales down very slightly to £40.9m. Operating profit margins were up 0.6% as market share rose.

"The hottest summer since 1976 wasn't kind to our ale sales, but the change in the weather is now seeing the return of the ale drinker," said Anand.

Preparations are well advanced for the English smoking ban, and Greene King claims the highest proportion of outside areas - 95% - of any pub group.

Christmas pub bookings are ahead of last year, and Anand said he did not share the concern of high-street retailers at the impact of internet sales on their businesses. "You can't get a proper pint over the internet."