All Bar One owner says sales growth dented by UK riots and wet weather

Pub and bar giant Mitchells & Butlers has revealed slower sales growth in the latest quarter after damp summer weather and disruption from UK riots in August.

But the All Bar One and Toby Carvery owner said it expects to deliver full-year results at the “upper end” of analyst expectations.

The London-listed firm said like-for-like sales have grown by 2.5% so far over the latest quarter.

It reflects a continued slowdown after 3.4% growth in the third quarter and 6.1% in the second quarter.

Mitchells & Butlers, which also runs Harvester and Miller & Carter, said the reduced growth was due to “progressive easing of the inflationary environment, as well as an unseasonally cool and wet summer period and the disruption caused by riots in city centres during August”.

Like-for-like sales have increased by 5.2% over the year to date, with all its brands in growth, Mitchells & Butlers said.

Phil Urban, chief executive of the group, said: “Sales growth has continued to normalise as inflationary cost pressures ease, whilst our diverse portfolio of established brands and advantaged estate locations underpin our outperformance against the market.

“We enter the new financial year armed with a fresh wave of initiatives under our Ignite programme and a full capital investment programme planned to deliver cost efficiencies, increased sales and to further drive market outperformance and increasing profitability.”

The company stressed that it expects a financial performance for the year to September as a whole at the upper end of guidance due to “robust” sales across the year and easing cost pressures.

It said its net cost headwinds will reduce to around £55 million this year as lower energy costs and easing food inflation offset higher labour costs.

The hospitality firm said it has converted or remodelled 185 of its venues over the year and opened another six new sites.

Shares in the business were up 1.3% on Thursday morning.