Slow-starting Urbium's got a Tiger in the tank

Urbium, the quaintly-named trendy bar chain, has experienced sobering times since it arrived on the stock market in the spring of last year. Although the shares made what was regarded as a disappointing debut, they continued to sink and were at one time down to 4p against a 14p high. But not for the first time the stock market got it horribly wrong and, following an upbeat trading statement last week, decided, rather grudgingly, to give the shares a little support. Even so, at 6.75p they are still cheap. The company even offered investors a little festive cheer. They had been forced in recent months to live on a diet of gloom and doom from the trendy end of drink retailing with profit warnings, even bankruptcies, devastating share prices. Yet, instead of the almost traditional warning, Urbium ­ not one of the best known names in the business ­ rolled out a trading report, reminiscent of the good old days when glamour drink retailing was one of the most heady sectors of the stock market. Like-for-like sales in December, revealed the group, were up a handsome 3.4% with overall sales climbing 37% to £9.8m. Such a performance means Urbium should hit stock-market profit forecasts of £9m or so for the year. This year's estimates are around £12m, with £15m pencilled in for next year. It's a remarkable display. After all, much of the group's trading relies on the prosperity of London's West End. So it has had to overcome the fall in tourists and the job axes which have been wielded in the City, cutting back on Christmas parties. Quite clearly the main Urbium formula, which in effect offers bars, nightclubs and restaurants under one roof, is proving recession-proof. Tiger Tiger is the prime concept. The flagship is in London, but it has spread its net and new branches at Croydon, Glasgow and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, clearly did well. Openings at Dublin and Nottingham are on the stocks. Moves onto the Continent, the first possibly involving Madrid, are in various stages of development. Other formulas have also been introduced. John Conlan, an experienced leisure man, heads Urbium. At one time he ran First Leisure Corporation, a sprawling business spreading, at various times, from nightclubs to pubs and from seaside attractions to hotels. It was closely related to the old Forté empire, which was unceremoniously broken up following the bitter £3.9bn Granada takeover battle. Urbium was, in effect, created from the 1998 proceeds of the sale of the Trocerdero Centre and London Pavilion in the heart of the West End. Chorion, the resultant company, decided to invest in Tiger Tiger. Besides drink retailing, Chorion banked on intellectual properties, taking in such names as Agatha Christie, Georges Simenon (Inspector Maigret) and Enid Blyton (of Noddy fame). But exploiting bars alongside such literary legends proved, not surprisingly, a mixed blessing. So it was decided to spilt Chorion in two ­ bars and intellectual properties. The shares of both divisions have, since the demerger, performed disappointingly. But at least Urbium is pulling up heady profits ­ the trading tale from the storytellers is, on the other hand, rather flat.