Young’s chairman Stephen Goodyear said the company’s London and south-east based sites had “benefited from significant pent-up demand" when pubs reopened after England's third lockdown.
In an AGM trading statement, Goodyear announced that trading had “continued to be ahead of the board’s expectations” following the publication of the group’s full year results on 20 May.
Total sales across the 13-week period from 12 April to 12 July were 95% of the same period in 2019.
Goodyear added: “Our trading has benefited from significant pent-up demand, as well as from the major capex programme undertaken in our pubs, hotels and outdoor areas and the delivery of some truly transformational projects.”
He said he was optimistic about the balance of the financial year to March 2022.
Staycation summer
The company was “in a strong position to capitalise on another busy staycation summer” thanks to a large number of events bookings, Goodyear said.
“We will continue to focus on our strategy of running premium, differentiated and well-invested pubs and hotels. The strength of our balance sheet leaves us well-placed to make further investments and generate good returns for the long term,” Goodyear added.
Young’s is to sell 56 of the 63 tenanted pubs to Punch and will retain the remaining seven sites for the long term.
It will sell most of the Ram Pub Company’s sites for a total consideration of £53m in cash, having generated earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of £4.7m for the year ended 31 March 2019.
The Ram Pub Company registered revenue of £3.3m, with an adjusted operating loss of £700,000, during the 52 weeks to 29 March 2021.
The sale would help the company strengthen its balance sheet and make it possible to invest further in its managed estate including freehold acquisitions, the group said.
The operator invested £16m into improving the pubs in its managed estate and bought two sites in Greenwich and St Albans during the lockdown.