Upper Crust owner SSP swings to huge loss as travel restrictions continue

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Mike Clasper, Chairman of the Board, said, "Throughout the past 16 months, Simon and our Executive team have done an excellent job in steering SSP through the enormous challenges presented by the pandemic, acting very rapidly to protect the business and its cash flow, create a more flexible operating model and strengthen the balance sheet. SSP has a very clear strategy and significant competitive strengths, placing it in an excellent position to take advantage of the many opportunities for growth that will be presented by the recovery in the travel sector."
SSP's outlets are focused on travel hubs, which have suffered a huge drop in passenger numbers during the pandemic.

Upper Crust owner SSP swung to a huge loss this year as the travel food operator’s sales suffered a sharp drop due to a reduction in passenger numbers.

Profit plunged from £197.2m in 2019 to a loss of £425.8m in the year ended 30 September as the impact of coronavirus restrictions hurt sales.

SSP reported a 47.9 per cent drop in revenue to £1.43bn with like-for-like sales down 50.8 per cent due to the closure of most global travel markets since March.

The company, which announced in July that it would axe around half of its workforce, said sales had sunk 93 per cent in the third quarter but had begun to recover as passenger numbers increased over the summer.

By the end of September sales were 76 per cent lower than last year, however the resurgence of the virus and additional lockdowns across the UK and Europe has resulted in further volatility.

Sales in the first quarter are expected to be around 80 per cent lower than 2019 levels. 

However SSP said it is optimistic that the roll out of Covid-19 vaccines will lead to a recovery in the travel sector in the second half of the financial year.

“Looking further out, we firmly believe that demand for travel will return and the actions we have taken since March, together with the evolving market backdrop, will ensure SSP is well positioned to capitalise on future market opportunities,” it said in its full-year results statement this morning.

SSP chief executive Simon Smith said: “Whilst we expect passenger numbers to remain subdued over the winter, we are optimistic that, alongside good progress with the vaccination programme, we will see a significant upturn in both domestic and international travel from the spring

“We are ready to respond quickly. The actions we are taking to rebuild the business will put us in a strong position to capitalise on the recovery as well as future new business opportunities, enabling us to deliver long term sustainable growth for the benefit of all our stakeholders.”