Wetherspoon's Irish pubs show 'steady' recovery but short of post-pandemic boom conditions
Founder and chairman of pubs chain Wetherspoon, Tim Martin, said: “Lockdowns and associated restrictions have had more profound and longer-lasting consequences than most economists, politicians and commentators predicted."
Wetherspoon pubs in Ireland are generating "steady improvements" but are still short of the boom conditions that some anticipated following the lifting of the pandemic restrictions, Tim Martin, the founder of the pubs and hotels chain has said.
Mr Martin, who is the non-executive chairman at the pubs and hotels chain which owns extensive properties in most large cities in Britain, said its UK pubs were "much slower than anticipated" to recover from the covid lockdowns and restrictions.
"Most people thought that there would be a boom in the hospitality industry once people were allowed out — but it didn't materialise, although trade is improving significantly," Mr Martin told the .
"Restrictions were lifted in Ireland later than the UK but the same pattern is emerging: A slow start but steady improvements month-by-month," he said.
Wetherspoon has a handful of pubs in Dublin, Belfast, Cork, and Carlow, and plans to open a large outlet in Galway. It operates a total of 834 pubs in Britain and Ireland, of which 30 premises are either up for sale or under offer.
Wetherspoon shares surged 5% following a better-than-expected update that showed that sales in recent months were running 9% higher than the equivalent period before the onset of the pandemic in 2019. Following a busy Easter weekend, sales were heading for an annual record, the company said.
Mr Martin said the outlook for the full financial year hadn't worsened despite the "intractable" issues caused by the inflation crisis.
“Lockdowns and associated restrictions have had more profound and longer-lasting consequences than most economists, politicians and commentators predicted," Mr Martin said in the update.
“Sales in the last quarter have continued their positive momentum, although inflation, especially in labour, energy and food costs, remains a more intractable issue," he said.
Sales in the company's financial third quarter were up by over 12% from last year, while sales increased by just over 9% in the 13 weeks to the end of April from the same period before the pandemic, in 2019.
