Mitchells & Butlers who own Toby Carvery has served up higher sales as there has been strong sales from pubgoers.
The hospitality giant is also under pressure with the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget which has led to higher meat costs, a hike in employer’s national insurance contributions and minimum wage increases.
In the 28 weeks to 12 April Mitchell Butlers said their total sales was £1.5 billion, this is 43% higher compared to the same period last year.
Chief executive Phil Urban said, “Whilst we’ll always have brands that are doing better than others, all our brands are doing well.”
He told the PA news agency, “It’s been the case for the last two or three years that Nicholson’s has led the way, closely followed by Sizzling Pubs, Vintage Inns, and Castle Pubs.
“Miller & Carter has had a solid six months so it’s good to see that doing well.”
However, he said that the Irish bar and pub chain O’Neill’s is facing challenges in the late-night market and is “probably having the toughest time.”
Urban said that food costs are rising and they are forecasting a higher rate of inflation in 2026.
He told PA, “But we are hard at work to mitigate that.
“Steak is a big driver of those costs – we’ve got a steak brand so we’re not going to compromise on quality.”
The chief executive added, “We and the sector will raise prices every year, I don’t think there’s any shame in that.
“Our pricing in recent years has ranged between about 3% and 5%.
“We base our pricing decisions on the market, looking at what our competitors are doing… but I would imagine that every operator in the sector with employer national insurance, before you even think about food costs, are having to think about prices again.
“Living wage has moved way ahead of inflation in the past three to four years, therefore some of that will be coming back into the sector.
“Today, a lot of our consumers have got more money in the pocket than they had before.”
