Young’s confirms possible sale of tenanted estate

Young's chief executive Patrick Dardis has confirmed the group is in discussions regarding the 'possible' sale of its tenanted estate.

Though Dardis does indeed confirm that Savills has been appointed to advise the group on this process, he states "there can be no certainty that any sale will proceed".

The announcement comes as the company released its preliminary results for the 52 weeks ending 29 March 2021 - a period which saw Young's pubs and hotels closed for almost nine months as a result of the pandemic.

Total group revenue was down by 70.9% to £90.6m, resulting in an operating loss of £35.1m. Once adjusted for non-underlying items, the operating loss for the business was £34m.

Managed investment

Managed house revenue was £87m, with an adjusted operating loss of £18.6m, while Ram Pub Company reports revenues of £3.3m, with an adjusted operating loss of £0.7m.

Young's invested £17m to enhance its managed estate during the period, and secured additional financing of £88.4m gross proceeds through an equity issue, and £20m through a new bank facility.

“We were able to navigate our way through the pandemic, despite the last financial year being one of the most challenging in our 189-year history," says Dardis. "I am extremely proud of the way our teams have reacted to the extraordinary challenges that we have faced.

"The absolute professionalism of our pub managers and their teams has enhanced our reputation as a highly responsible pub operator and underlined the exceptional quality of the Young's business.

“Despite the many lockdowns and disruption to our business, the financing decisions taken during the summer allowed us to continue to make significant investments in our pubs, with some truly transformational projects.

"We expect to see excellent growth from that investment this year and beyond.

“We are confident with the steps we have taken to ensure Young’s continues to be in a position of strength and there is potential for a strong recovery this summer. April started better than planned, with future bookings also looking strong.

"With this in mind, the board expects the business to get back to pre-Covid-19 levels of trade and margins by the end of June, assuming the roadmap, and in particular the 21 June ‘freedom day’, is not compromised."

Outdoor trading in the 144 pubs that we were able to open on 12 April was encouraging, achieving 85% of normal trade over the five-week period until all pubs were able to reopen this week.

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