Young’s has today announced its full year results for the 52 weeks ended 28 March 2022, showing Total revenue of £309m, up 251% against the prior year.
Other highlights include:
• Managed house sales were up 2.9% on the two-year comparative, despite the impact of further Covid restrictions and the Omicron variant
• Invested £73.7m over the year, including £24.7m in the existing managed estate and £36.8m adding nine new pubs to the portfolio
• Strategic sale of 56 tenanted businesses for £53m in June
• Net debt reduced by £74.9mto £173.8m and £134m capacity for future investment
• Strong trading since period end, with managed house revenue for the last 13 weeks up 17% against pre-pandemic levels
CEO Patrick Dardis (pictured) said, 'I would like to thank the teams across the business who have worked so hard to deliver these great results, in another year of extraordinary circumstances.
'It has been a huge privilege to lead the group for the past six years, culminating in a year when Young’s celebrated its 190th birthday. I owe enormous thanks to all my colleagues for their support, contribution and dedication that has made Young’s the business it is today.”
“We have found ourselves navigating challenges at nearly every turn, whether it be storms, floods and tube strikes, or the unwelcome arrival of the Omicron variant which hampered our Christmas trading. I am delighted to announce a strong set of results that marks a return to normalised profitability with unrestricted trading towards the end of the year.”
Patrick expanded, “After a quiet period on the acquisition front last year, we have made some exciting investments. The most significant of these was the acquisition of six pub and hotel assets from the Lucky Onion group in Cheltenham and the Cotswolds in February 2022. These predominantly freehold premium pubs and hotels perfectly complement our existing businesses in the area.”
“It’s been a great start to the new financial year, for the last 13 weeks revenue was up 17% versus pre-pandemic levels of 2019 and up 38.5% for the last 5 weeks against 2021. The Easter sunshine was a real boost, with some record weeks.
'We are looking forward to the extended Jubilee weekend where we hope to break more records. Young’s are firmly back in business, with the firepower to deliver further growth.”
Patrick closed, “Having announced my intention to step down as Chief Executive after six years in the role, I am pleased to hand over the reins to my successor, Simon Dodd and the rest of the executive team, at the coming AGM in July.
'Simon was recruited three years ago with succession planning in mind, his excellent leadership skills, vision and operational experience will be great assets to Young’s.”