Mission Mars expects high demand for Albert’s Schloss in the South of England but doesn’t underestimate the challenge of making its Bohemian bier palace in the capital as successful as its northern counterparts.
With Albert’s Schloss set to debut in London in the summer, CEO Roy Ellis tells MCA it has not been an easy ride to securing a perfect location.
The new site will be the fourth Albert’s Schloss in the UK, and its first site in the South for the Manchester-based business.
“You don’t get huge choice in London when seeking 15,000 - 20,000 sq ft of centrally located licensed retail space, which is why it’s taken almost 10 years to find a suitable spot.
“Over the years we’ve assessed dozens of potential opportunities in all sorts of interesting buildings and locations.
“Occasionally we’ve made offers and even agreed terms but sadly not managed to conclude deals due to a variety of factors but mostly being outbid or gazundered.”
The brand feels there will be a strong demand for Albert’s Schloss but remains mindful of the “huge job ahead” to make the Shaftsbury Avenue venue as popular as its sister sites in Manchester, Birmingham, and Liverpool.
“That said, an obvious area we might consider would be the City of London.”
With another new Albert’s Schloss currently in legals, the brand remains interested in the largest UK cities such as Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Leeds, Bristol and Belfast.
“Further afield Dublin could make a wonderful home for a Schloss as I’m sure would Las Vegas and many other us cities such as New York, Chicago and Miami”, said Ellis.
The multi-concept operator has celebrated strong growth across the group over the last two years, with c24-strong Rudy’s Pizza Napoletana delivering like-for-like (lfl) growth excluding VAT of 24%.
Meanwhile, Albert’s Schloss delivered 6% lfl growth.
More recently, Ellis says trading in December has been “extremely festive so far”.
Albert’s Schloss has seen 16% lfl growth on prior year across its established venues.
In December total company lfl growth also sits at 16%, with Rudy’s up 21% .
“All 3 Schloss’ have broken their own daily and weekly records multiple times, with £100,000 days not uncommon in Manchester and Birmingham.
“Of course, it’s the first Christmas we’ve had that’s been free of Covid concerns since 2019 and it’s noticeable in the extremely strong demand.
“Christmas day falls on a Monday which is great for most of the hospitality industry so we’re looking forward to the strongest Christmas results we’ve ever had”, the CEO adds.
Looking further ahead, Mission Mars remains “committed to our long term aim of creating a truly world-class hospitality business.”
“We will face these short-term challenges based on the fact that they are likely to be short term.
“Our focus is long term and therefore we don’t have to, and shouldn’t, knee jerk react to every market twist and turn.
With team training and welfare a key priority, Ellis says, “If we can get enough success in keeping guests and colleagues happy we won’t go too far wrong”
“We strive to have our guests wanting more of what we offer because it stands out in the market as being great quality at a fair price, so we constantly focus on our product.
“Consistent and careful monitoring” of guest satisfaction and team engagement metrics will guide the business on all factors, such as menu pricing, capital investment, tech development and new site selection.
In terms of financials, the brand aim to keep EBITDA at least growing in line with inflation.
“How we achieve this is flexible. It is likely to be a combination of pricing, volume growth, team efficiency, cost control and general efficiencies resulting from growth”, says Ellis.
