Return to the office helps hike Fuller’s sales 18 per cent in London
Fuller’s share price soared over three per cent this morning after the pub chain revealed that like-for-like sales growth in the City and central London grew over 17.9 per cent in the first half of the year.
The London-listed company, which has a cluster of pubs in the capital, said that an increase in workers commuting into the office, plus a boost in tourism, helped hike sales during the period.
Total sales across its 380-strong portfolio grew 17.1 per cent and like-for-like sales for the same period rose by 15.1 per cent.
The news came ahead of its AGM taking place this morning, with Fuller’s also declaring a total dividend of 14.68p per 40p ‘A’ and ‘C’ share for the year. This is an increase of 30 per cent on the previous year.
Over the past two years, the pandemic damaged trade for many pubs in the capital, as lockdown laws stopped commuters from going into the office.
This year companies have clamped down on remote working trends, with workers largely heading into work three days out of the week.
However, ongoing train and tube strikes pose a new threat to publicans.
In January Fuller’s was forced to warn that it expected its full year earnings to be below market expectations after train strikes in Britain dented its holiday sales.
“We are very pleased to have delivered a strong start to the year. The hard work of our teams, coupled with London’s continued recovery, is driving strong sales momentum,” Simon Emeny, chief of Fuller’s, said.
“Our comprehensive strategy, combined with the investments we have made in our people, infrastructure, marketing and estate, is delivering excellent results; and while cost inflation and the ongoing train and tube strikes continue to present challenges, we are pleased with our progress.
He added: “We have a clear vision and the best people in the sector to take the company forward, grow the business, and deliver excellent returns for all our stakeholders. I look forward to providing a further update on 16 November 2023 when we will issue our half year results for the 26 weeks to 30 September 2023.”