Young's reports manged house like-for-like sales increase

Its Ram Pub Company tenanted division delivered like-for-like sales up 1.6%. Because of managed transfers and three disposals within the estate, total sales in Ram were down 8.5%

In the first six weeks of the second half, managed house revenue is up 7% in total and 4.9% like-for-like.

In this morning’s update the group also revealed it had acquired the ‘SMITHS’ of Smithfield site and its sister site in Cannon Street, in a deal which completed this week. The site will immediately become Young’s largest venue with an average weekly take of over £100,000.

Total revenue for the period was up 6% to £144.1m with pre-tax profits flat at £22.1m.

During the first half of the year, the group invested a total of £14.3m into a number of significant redevelopments in the estate as well as the additions of the Bull (Bracknell) and the Chequers (Hanham Mills).

In the managed house division, drink sales were up 7.5% in total and 4.6% on a like-for-like basis during the period. Food sales increased by 5.3% in total and 4.1% on a like-for-like basis and now represent 30% of revenue mix.

The hotel estate saw average room rates rise 5.7% from £81.19 to £85.85 with RevPAR increasing by an impressive 6.6% to £68.01. The group said further growtopportunities for Young’s hotels have been identified and are planned in the years to come.

The contribution of the tenanted business was impacted by three transfers into the managed arm and three disposals. The transfers were the Woolpack (Bermondsey), the Hope and Anchor (Brixton) and King’s Arms (Wandsworth). The Bell (Illminster), Court House (Dartford) and the King’s Arms (Epsom) were sold for combined proceeds of £2.1m.

Chief executive Patrick Dardis said: “We are very pleased with our excellent performance during the period, which once again underlines the strength and effectiveness of a consistent, premium strategy and customer-focussed approach.

“The pub is still the go-to place in Britain for drinking and eating out and, while much has been written about the challenges facing the pub industry, we believe that providing customers with well-invested pubs, a quality offer and outstanding customer service is key to our success.

“Despite the continuing unpredictability of our trading environment, we have made a strong start to the second half of the year. We are delighted to have acquired the iconic ‘SMITHS’ of Smithfield, which sits in the heart of the City, as well as its sister venue in Cannon Street, since the period end. Both sites are a fantastic fit with our portfolio of premium managed sites, with their focus on world class steaks, breakfasts, craft beer and quality drinks and we are very excited about the potential for us to build upon their existing offer going forward.

“Our expectations for the full year remain unchanged and we are confident about our long-term prospects thanks to our premium offer, well-invested and prime located
pubs, and the talented teams we have in place across our business.