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Commercial Property News
Whitbread ahead in all divisions on LFL basis in Q4 as UK leisure and hospitality markets recover
Whitbread Plc, now the UK's largest hotel and restaurant group, today said that it's Q4 trading up to the 18th February has been ahead of the comparable period last year in all of it's operating divisions, the first such quarter this year, but that despite this, like for like trading overall for 2009 would just fall short of that in 2008. Having said that, Whitbread has been adding to it's businesses through the year, and overall sales are up 5.4%.
In Q4 Whitbread opened two more Premier Inn hotels and will end the year with a total of 42,799 rooms of which 41,720 rooms are in the UK and 1,079 rooms are overseas. The UK hotel business outside London generally has struggled this year - the REVPar in the UK regional hotel market has fallen overall by 10.2%, whilst Premier Inn REVPar fell just 6.9%.
Whitbread pub-restaurant division which trades under such brands as Beefeater, Brewers Fayre, Table Table, and Taybarns, opened five restaurants during the year, bringing the total estate at the year end to 374.
Costa Coffee has recorded another strong and accelerating underlying performance. In the quarter like for like sales were up 9.5%, recently benefiting from the launch of Costa's new 'Flat White' coffee at the end of January. Year to date sales in UK and overseas franchise units are up 35.8% to £203million. In the year, net 185 new Costa outlets were opened in the UK and net 32 in international markets, taking the total number of outlets to 1,505 across 24 markets.
In reporting these results the company has only reported 51 weeks of trading for 2009 and we now await the full consolidated annual results.
In Q4 Whitbread opened two more Premier Inn hotels and will end the year with a total of 42,799 rooms of which 41,720 rooms are in the UK and 1,079 rooms are overseas. The UK hotel business outside London generally has struggled this year - the REVPar in the UK regional hotel market has fallen overall by 10.2%, whilst Premier Inn REVPar fell just 6.9%.
Whitbread pub-restaurant division which trades under such brands as Beefeater, Brewers Fayre, Table Table, and Taybarns, opened five restaurants during the year, bringing the total estate at the year end to 374.
Costa Coffee has recorded another strong and accelerating underlying performance. In the quarter like for like sales were up 9.5%, recently benefiting from the launch of Costa's new 'Flat White' coffee at the end of January. Year to date sales in UK and overseas franchise units are up 35.8% to £203million. In the year, net 185 new Costa outlets were opened in the UK and net 32 in international markets, taking the total number of outlets to 1,505 across 24 markets.
In reporting these results the company has only reported 51 weeks of trading for 2009 and we now await the full consolidated annual results.
Thu, 4th Mar 2010