Fulham Shore: "The business has emerged in robust shape"
It currently has 68 of its 70 restaurants fully open and opened a new Franco Manca pizzeria in September, taking the brand up to a total of 52 sites.
Turnover was clocked at £68.6m and headline EBITDA increased to £15.2m.
The Government’s Eat Out To Help scheme gave Fulham Shore a boost, with revenues up ‘markedly’ on the previous year for the days the scheme was active.
Fulham Shore says its business has “emerged in robust shape from this critical period” and without the coronavirus sales would have “exceeded market expectations”.
It says it is ready to flex the business should UK Government regulations change again and that its success trading during and post lockdown means its even better prepared for any significant future changes.
“Franco Manca and The Real Greek are popular with the public,” the chairman’s statement says. “Fulham Shore is well capitalised and we have ample headroom in our borrowing facilities.”
“We are confident that this, combined with our cash balances, will see us emerge from this period as a successful survivor in an albeit reduced UK restaurant sector.”
“With rents likely to be falling for the next few years and more sites becoming available, the future looks promising for Fulham Shore.”
Fulham Shore also says that the restaurant market in the UK was heading for a correction well before the Coronavirus outbreak.
“There were too many restaurant businesses with owners and managers convinced they could swim like Mark Spitz, but which were actually being kept afloat by some badly made rubber rings and various leaky flotation devices."
"They were driven to expand by historically cheap debt, supposed high exit multiples on sale of the businesses and run by management teams who had never experienced either a downturn in the UK economy or an oversupply in the restaurant sector."
"Successful restaurant businesses will continue to be those offering reasonably priced food, made with quality ingredients, served by motivated teams."
