Greene King warns of fall in consumer confidence over Brexit

Rooney Anand, the ceo of Greene King, said the effect on confidence was likely to be in the near-term but argued the company already had a track record of “performing well in challenging conditions”​.

Greene King chairman Philip Yea agreed and said the recent decision to leave the EU would need time to be implemented.

“The uncertainty this brings is likely to weigh on the economy in the near-term. We will not be immune from its effects, but our business has shown resilience in the past.”​

The warnings came as the company reported positive preliminary results for the 52 weeks to May 1.

Group revenue was over £2bn, up 57.6% on the previous year, while pre-tax profit hit £256.5M, up 52.2%.

The company operates across three divisions with Brewing & Brands, Pub Company, its managed division,  and its tenanted division with Pub Partners.

Brewing & Brands​

Beer & Brands revenue grew 2.2% to a record £196.9M, while operating profit grew by 9.7% to £32.7M.

The company saw own-brewed volume growth of 2.9%. Its ale market share was up 40 basis points to 10.5%.

It operates in three core areas Greene King IPA, Old Speckled Hen and Belhaven.

Greene King said its strategy was to drive growth and cash generation through building consumer loyalty to its core ale brands and its range of seasonal and ‘craft’ ales.

During the year, initiatives to further build consumer loyalty and engagement included the Greene King IPA ‘To The Pub’ campaign. This reached an audience of over 20M with 60% of ale drinkers surveyed saying that the adverts encouraged them to buy Greene King IPA.

Other initiatives were a £1.2M investment in a multi-channel media campaign in the Hen brand family and increased use of social media to promote the Abbot Ale brand.  

Growing export market​

Greene King IPA it said was positively impacted by a brand refresh in the on-trade and growing popularity in the export market led by China.

Overall, volumes of Greene King IPA grew by 8%, the ‘Hen’ brand family had another successful year, particularly in take-home where penetration increased by 3% on last year.

Within its pub divisions, results were also strong.

Total revenue within Pub Company were £1,688.2M, up 68.7%, while Pub Partners reached £187.9M, up 54.1%.

Rooney Anand, chief executive officer, said: “It has been a transformational year for Greene King. We completed the acquisition of Spirit Pub Company and reached the milestone of £2bn revenue. ​

“I am pleased to report a strong start to the new financial year, although it is likely that consumer confidence will be affected by Brexit in the near-term.”​

 ​

 ​

 ​