Bill’s Restaurants, the fast-growing Richard Caring-backed chain, is on track to report turnover in its current financial year to the end of next July of between £50-55m, dependent on the timing of openings, M&C Report understands.
The group, which has opened 15 sites in 2013, saw turnover for the year to 28 July 2013 reach £27.5m compared to c£10m the previous 12 months.
The company, which expects to open a further 15-20 sites in 2014, said that the new period has started “very well”, with the group’s first £1m turnover week coinciding with the October half-term, when almost half of the estate set sales records.
The group said that all new sites have traded above expectation since opening, with the performance of the regional sites being “particularly encouraging”.
It is currently on site for openings in Ealing and Windsor in early 2014, and has a “strong pipeline” for new sites in the first half of 2014, which is thought will include its first site in the North West, in Manchester.
The company said: “Roberto Moretti and Scott Macdonald were officially named joint managing directors in October and have continued to drive the development of the business as we look to expand into the North of England.
“The menu and offering also continues to evolve and mid-October saw a significant refresh of the menu. The new dishes have helped to improve average spend per head and further driven lunch and evening covers.”
M&C Report understand that group is closing in on a site in Bluewater, Kent, and is in talks on opportunities in Tunbridge Wells, Worcester and Bury St Edmunds.
From breakfast to bedtime; comment by M&C Report editor Mark Wingett
Spend a few minutes in the company of Roberto Moretti and Scott Macdonald and under the friendly banter you will notice a steely determination and a very keen attention to detail, both traits are highlighted by the continued success of Bill’s.
Of course, this can be traced back to the steady hand of Andy Bassadone and Chris Benians, but over the last year the Strada and Cote founders have taken a step back from the day-to-day running of Bill’s, one to spend time overseeing the launch of Grillshack and Jackson & Rye and two to allow Macdonald and Moretti to further stamp their personalities and business sense on the group.
Since Macdonald came on board in February 2011, Bill’s has opened 24 sites and while the loyalists grumble that the continued pace of the brand’s rollout takes it further away from its historical Lewes and Brighton blueprint, the rest of the UK increasingly gets to enjoy the high levels of service and offer that the concept is increasingly come to be defined by.
The pace of expansion has not impacted performance, which I understand has continued into November and early December, with like-for-like sales up in the high single digits on a year to date basis, and average weekly sales above the £30,000 mark.
The next step for the group will be to see how the concept translates further up the country. Sites have been earmarked in a number of key northern cities, with Manchester set to be the group’s debut location in the north west. Its acquisitions team in this area is being expanded to ensure that it is in a position to take advantage of attractive sites as they become available. There will be no easing off on the expansion front.
It is also set to ramp up the retail side of the business, with the recent appointment of Tanya McMullen, former buying manager at Selfridges, set to increase the quality and size of the group’s off-trade offer and online presence.
What is its potential? Backer Richard Caring has already thrown down the figure of 200 sites as a gauntlet on what he believes it can achieve and as a crumb to future investors. It has proven its ability to work across a number of locations, from high street to town centre and shopping centre, and as Macdonald has pointed out should bring something different to many restaurant circuits.
But before that Caring, Bassadone and Benians will surely look at options for the business. With momentum building behind M&A activity and the deals for Byron and Cote fresh in the memory, 2014 should be a key year for what is fast becoming one of the UK’s best casual-dining operations.
