Nando’s, the Capricorn Ventures-backed group, believes it can eventually double its current c350-strong estate in the UK, M&C understands.
The 348-strong brand, which saw parent company Nando’s Group Holdings report turnover of £587m in the 12 months ending 28 February 2015, up from £535m the year before, will open a further 25 sites in its current financial year and refurbish in excess of 30 units.
The group, which completed the restructure of its global business at the start of the year, including acquiring the global intellectually property rights to Nando’s for £480m, is believed to have traded strongly over the last nine months and plans to open a further 25 sites next year, while refurbishing a further 30-plus sites.
The global restructure has seen the group take control of its subsidiary businesses in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, while holding minority stakes in its operations in Indian, Malaysian and Singapore.
The total number of sites the group had in operation at the end of its last financial year was 1,191.
Nando’s Group Holdings, which includes Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK), reported a decline in pre-tax profit to £44.6m compared to £47.2m the year before.
The company stated: “On 22 February 2015, the company acquired a number of operating companies in various countries, all focused on operating restaurants and other businesses under the Nando’s brand. As result there was an impact on the balance sheet of the company and the group in these financial statements. These acquisitions occurred just prior to the year-end so do not materially impact on the profit and loss performance of the company or group in the current year.”
Capital investment in the year climbed from £56.5m to £63.3m.
Yesterday, M&C revealed that the company had made a key addition to its management team, after appointing Richard Atkinson, who was responsible for building the award-winning JustGiving service, as its new technology director for UK & Ireland.
Nando’s, which will have 363 sites by the end of its current financial year, also promoted Garry Duncan, who has been with the company for over 15 years, from regional director for the south of England to operations director for the UK & Ireland, after John Nelson’s decision to become chief executive of MOD Pizza UK.
