Mitchells & Butlers suffers £200m loss after lockdowns hit hospitality trade

All Bar One owner Mitchells & Butlers saw pre-tax losses widen to £200m in the six months to 10 April as coronavirus restrictions shut down its estate.

The group, which operates 1,700 UK restaurants and bars under brands including Harvester and Browns, reported a 79% drop in total sales for the first half of its financial year. It was also forced to write off £5m in stock after being forced to close sites in December ahead of the national lockdown.

Revenue fell to £219m, down from almost £1.4b during the same period in 2020.

Mitchells & Butlers was hit hard by the pandemic and made 1,300 redundancies in 2020 and placed 99% of its employees on furlough during closures.

It was forced to raise £350m in emergency funding after it was left with just £113m with all facilities drawn in January.

The group said it reopened around 535 sites for outdoor trading after 12 April, with sales at 37% of pre-Covid levels, and almost all of its estate is now open for indoor guests.

Chief executive Phil Urban said: "M&B was a high-performing business coming into the pandemic. With the support of our main stakeholders, we are now well placed to emerge in a strong competitive position and look forward to the removal of remaining trading restrictions in June such that the business is able to return again to full and sustainable profitability.”

Other Mitchells & Butlers brands include Toby Carvery, Miller & Carter and Ember Inns.

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