Loungers, the Piper-backed cafe bar operator, says its Cosy Club concept has the potential to expand to at least 70 sites, on top of at least 250 potential Lounge outlets.
The group today reported an 8.6% rise in like-for-like sales in December, while year-on-year net sales are up 49.6% to £3.458m. Cosy Club accounted for 30.8% of sales, totalling more than £1m, despite only six of Loungers’ 41 sites operating under that format.
Loungers managing director Alex Reilley said: “We’re extremely pleased to report another December of strong like-for-like sales and have seen countless records, at both unit and company level, broken in the process.
“The performance of the Cosy Clubs is particularly noteworthy and is a strong sign of the Cosy Club brand really beginning to find its groove”.
Reilley confirmed that a deal for a Cosy Club site in Bristol has been agreed and is with solicitors, and that the group has actively stepped up its search for more opportunities for the brand.
“We’ve spent a lot of time in the last 12 months finessing the Cosy Club brand which, coupled with how strongly the Cosy Clubs have traded in the last few months, means we feel ready to put our foot down a little more.
“The Lounge brand will continue to remain the main growth engine for the business but, of the 15 opening we have planned this year, we’d like two or three to be Cosy Clubs. We conservatively believe there’s potential for at least 70 Cosy Club sites nationally on top of 250+ potential Lounge sites.”
Loungers’ next opening is Pico Lounge in Glossop on 22 January.
