TGI Friday's posts 22% profit rise in 2014
Casual dining restaurant group TGI Friday's has posted strong rise in pre-tax profits of nearly 22% for 2014.
The results came in a year during which the ownership of the business changed twice - first when Carlson Holdings sold it to Sentinel Capital Partners and TriArtisan Capital Partners in July 2014, and then again on 23 December 2014 when its new owners subsequently sold the UK business to Electra Partners for £225m.
The casual dining group, which has nearly 70 UK sites, saw pre-tax profits rise to £10.7m for the year to 28 December 2014, up from £8.8m the year before.
Total sales rose 7.4% to £174.4m (up from £161.8m in 2013). Like-for-like sales were up 1.4%.
Karen Forrester, who is widely credited with turning the UK TGI Friday's around, remains chief executive of the business, which has plans to grow in 2015/16.
TGI Friday's recently revealed that it would create another 700 jobs before the end of 2015, with six restaurant openings planned this year and another 10 in 2016.
It also took the top spot in The Sunday Times' Best Big Companies to Work For list earlier this year.
