Debt repayments drag coffee firm Pret A Manger to 33m losses
SANDWICH chain Pret A Manger is struggling to pay its interest on its growing debt mountain, it has been revealed in figures filed by Companies House.
Bridgepoint Capital, its private equity owner, saddled the group with debt during the boom time, but interest payments have now grown on its £325m borrowings.
The eaterie, founded in 1986 by Julian Metcalfe and Sinclair Beecham, now owes £175.6m in bank debt and £150m in loans from shareholders.
According to figures filed at Companies House by holding company PAM Group, turnover was £190.2m and operating profit was £14.4m from when Bridgepoint took over on 3 April last year until 1 January.
But the interest payments on the borrowing have dragged the group’s pre-tax figure down to a loss of £34.2m.
The debt repayments mean the group now only has £23.5m in the bank, despite strong trading.
The sandwich chain recently hiked the price of a black coffee by almost 22 per cent despite the price of beans tumbling.