Good Year For Shepherd Neame
Shepherd Neame, Britain’s oldest brewer and the owner and operator of 327 pubs, has reported an 11.7% increase in turnover to £156.2 million and a 7.2% rise in underlying operating profit to at £15.3 million for the 52 weeks ended 24 June 2017. Underlying profit before tax was up 8.0% to £11.2 million and statutory profit before tax was £11.8 million, against £14.4 million in the previous year, primarily due to high, one off profits on property disposals in 2016
Investment, modernisation and premiumisation fuelled the sales outperformance in the underlying business with managed pubs like-for-like sales growth of +8.1%, and own beer volume growth of +3.9% – both substantially ahead of the market.
Jonathan Neame, chief executive of Shepherd Neame
Shepherd Neame acquired14 pubs acquired at a cost of £24.8 million in the year as it continued the strategy of enhancing the quality of its estate. Proceeds of £5.9 million were raised from disposal of 15 pubs.
Continued investment of £10.7 million was made across estate to ensure every pub has high standards and a unique character with an attractive offer for customers. A new brand identity was launched during the year with a new website and pub signage.
The first phase of the modernisation programme of the brewery was completed. New, premium British brands were launched and costs streamlined to mitigate the impact of the Asahi contract termination in February 2018.
Jonathan Neame, chief executive of Shepherd Neame, comments: “This has been a good year for the company with strong underlying performance and some great acquisitions that add real value to the company. We are pleased with the strategic and operational progress made in all areas of our business.”
He continues: “We are mindful of the political and economic backdrop, but our strategic focus on investing for the long term, innovating and consistently delivering great pub environments and outstanding service for our customers will stand us in good stead. We remain confident that the actions that have been taken and our relentless pursuit of excellence will continue to deliver good long-term returns for our shareholders.”
