Ultimate Leisure takes premium to heart

In changing its name to Premium Bars and Restaurants Ultimate Leisure new moniker will reflect "the positive strides the group has taken over the last two years and is more appropriate for the future direction and strategy of the company".

Reflecting on his two years in the top job at the North East-based bar operator, chairman Mark Jones said: "I made it clear at the outset that Ultimate was badly positioned in a number of areas.

"Food was growing at double-digit rates across the industry but the group was missing out, plus it hadn't reinvested when we'd had good years.

"I called for an investment programme, which we've had, with 30 bars capex'd in the last 24 months, and for us to get our food operation going. That's taken work, but with our recent acquisitions food sales are now more than 13 times last year's levels," he added.

As part of its shift in emphasis, Ultimate bought food-led operation Bel & The Dragon for £8.75m in June and later acquired Living Room Ventures, which owns the Living Room bar/restaurant brand, for £28m. it already operates the upmarket bar chain, Prohibition.

The 'old' Ultimate still accounted for 40 per cent of the group's sales, he explained, but new structures meant the business would be more focused in future.

In the year to June 30, 2007, Ultimate posted turnover up 11.8 per cent at £36.3m, with pre-tax, pre-exceptional charge profits of £400,000, down from £1.4m last year. Losses before tax were £2.6m, reduced from £3.6m in 2006.

Jones said its second half of the year saw sales and profit growth "for the first time in three years".

Two-thirds of its 40-strong estate had outside smoking areas and was well-placed as the ban continues to take hold, he added.The group has £7m left of the £25m it raised via a share placing earlier this year, and this would be invested in "premium businesses; restaurants and bar/restaurants" as opportunities arose, he said.

"We're not going to rush out and spend just because we have the money to spend. Going forward we believe there'll be downward pressure on some operators to sell," explained Jones.

Trading since the year end had seen turnover up 109 per cent on last year, boosted by recent acquisitions, he added.