Young’s will report an “excellent” start to the current financial year at its AGM today, with revenue up 39.7% in the first 13 weeks, and up 34.9% on a like-for-like basis against last year.
During the last financial year, the premium managed pub company made nine acquisitions, as well as the more recent acquisitions of the Bedford Arms (Chenies Village) and Merlins Cave (Chalfont St. Giles).
Young’s has also seen full year benefit from major investments last year into its existing estate, including the Grand Junction Arms (Harlesden) completed in January, the Spread Eagle (Wandsworth), reopened in March with an additional 21 bedrooms and the Phoenix (Victoria), reopened in late May of this year.
Patrick Dardis steps down today as chief executive after six years in the role, and will be succeeded by Simon Dodd, who was recruited as chief operating officer three years ago with succession planning in mind.
Dardis will remain on the board for an orderly transition to Dodd, until he retires at the end of September. He will remain available to the Company until the end of March 2023.
Chairman Stephen Goodyear said: “I have thoroughly enjoyed working with Patrick over the last 20 years. He has worked very effectively and with great energy and passion for the business. On behalf of the board, I would like to thank him for his huge contribution and his many successful achievements during his time at Young’s.
“The board feels that Young’s is well placed to manage the impact of the current inflationary environment on our cost base, but are very mindful of the potential impact that the inflationary environment could have on consumer sentiment and ultimately spending in our pubs.
“We will continue to invest in the future growth of the business, sticking to our strategy of running premium, differentiated and well-invested pubs and hotels. The strength of our balance sheet leaves us well-placed to make further investments and generate good returns for the long term.”
