Marston's reports record revenue following brand expansion
Pub and beer business Marston's has reported a 7% increase in turnover to £937.3m.
Underlying profit before tax for the 52 weeks to 1 October 2016 increased by 7% to £98m and operating rose to £172.7m, which is up by 4%.
This is credited to the positive impact of new openings and the acquisition of Thwaites' in 2015.
Marston's operates 416 destination and premium pubs including Pitcher & Piano and Revere, 812 taverns and leases 331 pubs. It operates 13 lodges each with 25-40 rooms. One pub was converted from a destination estate to a Revere, with a further three Revere Town bars opening in Leeds, Edinburgh and Knutsford. Three premium pubs in Hammersmith, Harrogate and Sheffield are planned to open in 2017.
Total revenue in the destination and premium pubs increased by 8% to £440.8m, and like-for-like sales were 2.3% up on last year. The total revenue for the taverns increased by 2.9% to £221m and saw a like-for-like sales increase 2.7%.
The total revenue within Marston's leased pubs decreased by 5.4%, which the company said reflected disposals and transfers.
Ralph Findlay, CEO of Marston's said: "Trading has been solid in the first few weeks of the new financial year and we have seen no discernible change to the trends experienced in 2016. The majority of our major product cost lines are contracted for 2017 and well into 2018.
"We have a high quality pub and beer business which is displaying positive momentum and is consistently outperforming the market. We believe that, despite some continuing market headwinds, our expansion plans for new pub-restaurants, lodges and Revere bars will further enhance our ability to deliver attractive returns."
Marston's hails ‘solid' 2016 growth >>Marston's in double-digit profit and revenue growth >>
Euro 2016 and Brexit makes no impact on Marston's >>
Latest video from The Caterer