Enterprise Inns finds poor weather, Jubilee and Euro 2012 ‘interesting and challenging'
Enterprise Inns has found the 18 weeks to 4 August "interesting and challenging", with any help from the Jubilee celebrations and Euro 2012 being outweighed by the poor weather.
Like-for-like income in Enterprise Inns' whole pub estate fell 1.2% in the 44 weeks to 4 August, an improvement on the 5.1% drop during the same period last year.
But Enterprise said that trends in its substantive estate, which is made up of 5,437 pubs and accounts for 94% of revenue, were improving, with like-for-like income per pub up by 1.6% over the 44-week period. The substantive lease agreement is a longer term lease of 10, 15 or 20 years.
Meanwhile Enterprise said that the Olympics was not "materially impacting" trading performance, although it hoped that the positive sentiment generated by British success would encourage customers to celebrate in their local community pubs.
The company added that it has made £148m through disposals, and expected it to be £200m by the end of the year. It made £26m from selling 121 unsustainable pubs, while a sale and leaseback of 17 pubs in December last year made a further £24m. And it has also sold 82 exceptional properties for £98m.
By Neil Gerrard
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