City Pub Group reports ‘pivotal year' of sales, growth and expansion

City Pub Group has reported a "pivotal year" of sales, growth and expansion following its London Stock Exchange listing.

In its final results for the 53 weeks ended 31 December 2017 the group saw adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation up 51% to £6.1m and adjusted profit before tax jump 102% to £3.2m, driven by acquisitions and good performance.

The group saw revenue increase of 35% to £37.4m and like-for-like sales growth of 3.7% driven by growth in drink and accommodation.

The company opened eight pubs last year with a further seven openings earmarked for 2018 and further sites identified, and said it is "on course" to meet its target of doubling the size of the estate to around 65 pubs by mid-2021.

City Pub Company East and City Pub Company West merged in October 2017 to form the City Pub Group and together listed on the London Stock Exchange in November, raising £35m of new equity to fund growth.

Clive Watson (pictured), executive chairman of the City Pub Group, said: "2017 was a pivotal year in the evolution of the business. Not only did we combine the two divisions under one roof, but we made the important step of listing on AIM.

"The sector continues to experience a number of well-trailed headwinds but we are positioned to meet these challenges and with our robust balance sheet, well invested estate and strong cash generation, we are confident of delivering continued strong progress and meeting our expectations for the year as a whole."

City Pub Group operates a predominately freehold estate of 34 wet-led pubs in Southern England and Wales, and has acquired five additional sites, with contracts exchanged on a further two sites and completion expected at the end of April. It revealed plans to open a vegan venue in London's Parsons Green earlier this year, which is expected to open this month.

For the first 14 weeks of 2018, total sales were up 22% on 2017. The snow in the first quarter adversely impacted trading, but with key sporting events, particularly the World Cup football tournament in June, new openings and acquisitions are expected to combat this.

Increasing sales, scale and efficiency are hoped to mitigate rising employee costs, business rates increase and Brexit uncertainty.

City Pub Group reveals plans for vegan venue in Parson's Green >>

Get The Caterer every week on your smartphone, tablet, or even in good old-fashioned hard copy (or all three!).