Stonegate’s conversions of its Living Rooms sites will have a “bias” towards Missoula, the group’s new US-inspired concept, chief executive Toby Smith has told M&C Report.
He also expects this year to invest in between 20 and 25 of the 78 sites it bought from Bramwell last November, with the majority sitting in its ‘trad’ pubs arm.
Smith declined to reveal trading figures but said the first Missoula, which opened at a former Living Room in Milton Keynes on 5 December, has “worked really well”. “We’re absolutely delighted for something that’s a complete change.”
The second, in York, opened last night after a £240,000 investment.
Stonegate bought the 13-strong Living Room estate from Premium Bars & Restaurants in August in a deal thought to be around £10m; one outlet, in Heddon Street in central London, was placed on the market after the landlord declined to assign the lease to Stonegate.
Another, at St Katherine’s Dock in London, re-opened in November as a Slug and Lettuce. “That’s going terrifically well,” said Smith.
Regarding future Future Living Room conversions, he said: “The bias probably is more towards Missoula than it is to Slug & Lettuce, simply because some of the locations are very close to Slugs and I think they complement each other.”
However, he said the Living Room business is “really solid” and “it’s not like we have to change them tomorrow”.
Regarding the 78 former Bramwell sites, Smith said: “For the rest of 2014 I would expect there would be between 20 and 25 that we would invest in.
“Predominately they will be under our ‘trad pub’ banner because they are great traditional pubs - then the same again next year.”
The company typically undertakes 90 to 100 investments per year.
