Acquisition lifts Jennings
Jennings Brothers, the Lake District-based brewer and pub operator, has reported pre-tax profit up 55% to £833,000 for the six months ended 26 March. Turnover increased by 60% to £15.2m.
The jump is partly the result of Jennings' £8.2m acquisition of 75-strong pub chain Café Inns last July. Operating margins also rose from 10.6% to 11.5%.
Ten major pub refurbishments were carried out during the period at a cost of £1.6m.
Jennings has also re-organised its 175-strong estate into two divisions: Taverns, where beer sales predominate, and Inns, where there is greater emphasis on food and, in some cases, accommodation. The company now has 139 letting bedrooms.
Trading was "patchy" in the early months of 2000, Jennings said, but had been improving in recent weeks.
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