Despite a difficult trading environment, we are still a nation of pub-lovers, if recent results of two of the UK's biggest pub companies are anything to go by.
Solid growth in its core estate, plus two major acquisitions last year, helped Enterprise Inns boost pre-tax profits by 75% in the half-year to 31 March 2003.
The group, the UK's largest independent operator of leased and tenanted pubs, increased profits to £81m, from £46.2m the previous year. Turnover grew by 56% from £150.2m to £234m.
Operating profit before exceptionals soared by 82% to £142.6m, which included a £45m contribution from the 1,860 pubs the group bought from Laurel Pub Holdings last year and £18.1m from its share of the Unique Pub Company.
Pub operators and brewer Wolverhampton & Dudley boosted operating margins from 19.3% to 20% and turned in record interim earnings per share of 28.4p, a rise of 15%. However pub churn contributed to a 4.3% fall in turnover in the half-year to 29 March.
"Our trading performance has been resilient in a competitive and difficult market," said chief executive Ralph Findlay.
The group, rumoured to be in talks with Eldridge Pope, saw turnover fall from £250m to £239.2m, while pre-tax profits dropped from £31.3m to £30.1m. During the past financial year-and-a-half, the group has sold 85 pubs and lost retail turnover from 104 pubs transferred in September from its managed to its tenanted division.
Its 479-strong managed pub division, Pathfinder Pubs, saw turnover drop from £134.8m to £121.2m following transferrals to the tenanted estate. Operating profit fell from £25.4m to £23.4m.
The pubs, which have an average weekly turnover of £10,000, boosted like-for-like sales from food by 6.4% and food new represents 27% of turnover from managed branches.