Loungers PLC Trading update for the 52 weeks ended 16 April 23 (2834X)
April 25 2023 - 1:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMLGRS
RNS Number : 2834X
Loungers PLC
25 April 2023
25 April 2023
Loungers plc
("Loungers" or the "Group")
Trading update for the 52 weeks ended 16 April 2023
Continued industry-leading like for like sales growth; record
revenues for the full year;
good progress on accelerated site roll-out, with 29 new openings
in the year
Loungers, a leading operator of all-day café/bar/restaurants
across the UK under the Lounge, Cosy Club and Brightside brands,
today announces a trading update for the 52 weeks ended 16 April
2023.
The Group has continued to deliver industry-leading like for
like sales growth, up 7.4% on a one-year basis and 17.6% ahead of
pre-pandemic levels on a three year basis. The Group is pleased to
have delivered record total revenue for the financial year of
GBP283.5m, up 19.5% on the previous year (FY22: GBP237.3m).
The marked growth of 11.8% in one year like for like sales in
H2, whilst partially reflective of the impact of Omicron in the
comparative period, also reflects a strong final 12 weeks to the
financial year. Our sales performance continues to highlight the
relevance and resilience of our brands.
The strength of our sales performance has enabled the business
to manage the macro-economic backdrop and accordingly we expect
EBITDA for FY23 to be broadly in line with market expectations.
Our balance sheet remains strong, with non-property net debt at
16 April 2023 of GBP6.2m (17 April 2022: underlying net debt of
GBP2.6m). Year-end net debt reflects the acquisition during the
year of three freehold sites for a total consideration of GBP3.9m
and the acceleration of our site roll-out programme.
During FY23 the Group opened 29 new sites, comprising 24
Lounges, four Cosy Clubs and our first roadside site under our new
Brightside brand, taking the portfolio to a total of 222 sites at
year end. Subsequent to the year end, we have opened a further
Lounge in Altrincham. The FY23 cohort of sites have traded well
since opening and provide confidence as to the continuing strength
of the pipeline.
Loungers expects to update the market next on 12 July 2023 when
we announce our preliminary results for the year ended 16 April
2023 .
Nick Collins, CEO, commented:
"We have once again delivered a truly stand-out performance over
the year. Our sales have been exceptional with the mature estate
trading 18% ahead of pre-pandemic levels and 7% ahead of what was a
really strong performance last year. We have progressed well with
our accelerated site roll-out programme, opening 29 sites during
the year which as a cohort are trading well above average. The
property market continues to work in our favour and our pipeline of
around 35 sites for FY24 is incredibly exciting with nine openings
planned for the first quarter. The first site of our new roadside
concept, Brightside, has opened well, and we look forward to
opening the next two Brightside sites in the summer.
"For almost a decade now we have consistently out-performed the
market as we strive to deliver better for our customers and our
teams. The inflationary pressure across our supply chain looks to
be easing, and our scale and continued growth have allowed us to
mitigate much of the impact. We look forward to continued strong
performance as we enter FY24."
Like for like sales performance
Gross Sales - excluding VAT benefit
One year 20 weeks to 28 weeks to 48 weeks to
2 October 2022 16 April 2023 16 April 2023
[1]
+1.5% +11.8% +7.4%
Three year 24 weeks to 20 weeks to 44 weeks to
2 October 2022 19 February 2023 19 February 2023
[2]
+17.0% +18.1% +17.6%
For further information please contact:
Loungers plc Via Powerscourt
Nick Collins, Chief Executive Officer
Gregor Grant, Chief Financial Officer
Houlihan Lokey UK Limited (Financial Tel: +44 (0) 20 7484
Adviser and NOMAD) 4040
Sam Fuller / Tim Richardson
Liberum Capital Limited (Joint Broker) Tel: +44 (0) 20 3100
Andrew Godber / John Fishley 2000
Peel Hunt LLP (Joint Broker) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7418
Dan Webster / Andrew Clark 8900
Powerscourt (Financial Public Relations) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7250
Rob Greening / Nick Hayns / Elizabeth 1446
Kittle
[1] 48 weeks represents the FY23 period unimpacted by government
Covid restrictions. The one year LFL result is shown gross to
remove the VAT benefit that ended on 31 March 2022.
[2] 44 weeks represents the comparative FY20 period unimpacted
by government Covid restrictions. There is no VAT benefit in the
three year LFL.
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