Salaries 15% to 25% higher than elsewhere in the industry have resulted in the number of managers leaving pub company JD Wetherspoon reaching its lowest ever level.
The figures were revealed last week as Wetherspoon posted a 3% rise in half-year pre-tax profits, from £24.9m to £25.6m, with turnover up 23% and like-for-like sales rising 4.7%.
Managing director John Hutson said turnover among its 3,500 or so managers was now about 12%. The industry average is between 40% and 50%.
Share options, an extensive training programme and ensuring pubs had experienced deputy managers in place to take some of the strain also helped. Salaries for managers were generally now about £30,000 after bonuses, he said.
Wetherspoon warned the City in November that its profits would be down by about 10% on original forecasts.
Hutson said an increase in duty on spirits such as Smirnoff Ice and Vodka Reef had added between 6p and 11p to the price of a bottle, and increases in insurance premiums since 11 September were to blame for the period's relatively small rise in profits.
These two factors had added about £3m to £4m of extra costs to the business and, without them, profits would have been up some 15% to 16%, Hutson estimated.
"Our average sales per pub are up, and our pubs are busier. It is hard work to make them still more attractive, but people are still going out for a drink," he said.
During the six months to 26 January, 21 pubs were opened, bringing the portfolio up to 624. A further 14 sites are under construction, 43 have planning permission, 27 have terms agreed and 120 are in negotiation.
Wetherspoon's half-year Results
Turnover: up 23% to £350.6m
Pre-tax profit: up 3% to £25.6m
Operating profit: up 5% to £35m
* Twenty-one pubs opened during the six months, bringing the total to 629. Like-for-like sales were up 4.7%.
* Fourteen pubs are being built; a further 43 have planning permission; 27 have terms agreed; and a further 120 are in negotiation.
* Like-for-like sales were up by 4.9% in February 2003.