Sales soar at SFI
Pub operator SFI, owner of the Litten Tree and Bar Med chains, says business during June, July and August was up by 87% on last year.
The increase included the impact of its purchase of the 17-strong Slug & Lettuce chain in July. But even excluding this, sales were 60% higher.
Like-for-like sales remained positive, although they had fallen back from the high levels achieved in the early summer when the pubs benefited from the Euro 2000 football tournament.
SFI said it saw no reason to change its policy of charging higher prices for drinks at peak times.
In the last few weeks the group has opened a Slug & Lettuce in Brentwood, Essex; Bar Meds in Croydon, Northampton and Wigan; and a Litten Tree in Hereford.
The Brentwood Slug & Lettuce is only 50 yards from a Litten Tree pub, but the group said the new opening had had no material affect on trading at the established outlet.
SFI chairman and chief executive Tony Hill called on the Prime Minister to implement the White Paper on licensing reform in full and warned against cherry-picking some of the proposals for quick implementation.
"The archaic regulations surrounding the licensing laws are inappropriate in today's society and overall reform is required, with appropriate checks and balances," Hill said.
