Patisserie Valerie group sees record profit as pro-Brexit chair “confident”
Patisserie Holdings, the parent company of cake cafe chain Patisserie Valerie, has announced record ..
Patisserie Holdings, the parent company of cake cafe chain Patisserie Valerie, has announced record sales and profit today despite challenges in the casual dining sector.
The figures
The company, which also operates under the Druckers, Philpotts, Baker & Spice and Flour Power City brands, lifted revenue by 9.7 per cent to £114.2m in the year ending September 2017.
Pre-tax profit rocketed 17.1 per cent to £20.2m while earnings before deductions hit £25.6m, an increase of 15.7 per cent.
The final dividend of 2.4p per share was 20 per cent larger than last year's.
Why it's interesting
Although many in the casual dining sector are wary of leaving the EU, and the impact on consumer confidence which this may bring, Patisserie Holding's executive chairman Luke Johnson has remained staunchly pro-Brexit.
Read more: Why I’ll be voting to leave the costly, dysfunctional and bureaucratic EU
Johnson's prediction that any fall in sterling would not be a primary concern for his business appears to have been vindicated through these results, as Patisserie Holdings has also managed to open 20 stores over the last 12 months and is targeting 20 more for 2018.
The company said that its costs have been “tightly controlled with inflationary wage and ingredient cost pressures mitigated in the year”.
Analyst Roger Tejwani at FinnCap said: “Record sales and profit in an extremely challenging environment highlights disciplined expansion, rigorous cost control and the right pricing and format strategy.”
The business added it was reviewing options for an additional production facility located near Manchester.
Patisserie Holdings has made developments to keep up with the changing nature of consumer purchasing. Its online sales grew by 26 per cent over the year, and it entered into a supply agreement with Sainsbury's.
Read more: Comptoir Libanais losses widen as casual dining sector is served further bad news
What Patisserie Holdings said
“We have delivered another year of excellent financial results, achieving our targets in a challenging environment,” said Johnson.
Our indulgent, affordable treats remain attractive to customers, and our flexible business model has enabled us to mitigate inflationary cost pressures. With a highly cash generative group, strong brands and a focused management team I remain confident of another year of growth and achievement.
Read more: The Restaurant Group has appointed Patisserie Valerie's boss to its board
