West Cornwall Pasty Co Ltd, the UK’s largest pasty operator has announced impressive results following phase one of a dynamic repositioning period.
The brand has become known for its multi award winning, handmade PGI status Cornish pasties and burgeoning own brand coffee label – St Just.
Turnover for West Cornwall Pasty Co Ltd in the 50 week trading period ended 31st March 2015 was £12.5m generating an EBITDA of £551k. The management team are delighted with the turnaround, given under previous ownership the same business had lost over £800k, representing an improvement of over £1.3m in the space of just 12 months.
Investment into a complete repositioning of the West Cornwall Pasty Co brand over the past year has paved the way for the fast track turnaround bolstered by strong customer communications at store level and vibrant, interactive customer communications on a digital level. Measurable results from new store designs, broader product ranges and simplification of pricing across the retail estate has given confidence for expansion of the retail estate in transport hubs, sporting venues and the leisure events market.
This is a fresh trading period for the company, the first since the acquisition of 33 retail units, 2 seasonal sites and a substantial franchise agreement with MOTO Hospitality Limited from the Administrators (PWC) of West Cornwall Pasty Realisations Limited (In Administration) on 11 April 2014.
Despite the challenging loss of two retail sites, where it was not possible to agree terms with the landlords to remain in occupation, growth strategies for the railway station estate have been put in place to compensate and are showing a strong sales performance.
Other areas of successful growth include the West Cornwall Pasty Co Franchise which continues to grow with sales revenue up 20% on previous years. The company have teamed up SFC Events Ltd to broaden the profile of the brand and in turn generate profit at the UK’s premier sports and leisure events including Silverstone F1, The Open, Cheltenham, Wembley, Millennium Stadium, Twickenham, Reading & Leeds Festivals and the Goodwood Festival.
Second phase strategies include expansion, development and growth of the company’s premium branded niche food proposition, that is focused on the ‘Food-to-Go’ market forming the central part of plans for 2016/17. The company’s own brand coffee‘St Just’ hot drinks range that will also take centre stage.
Further sales channels will continue to be explored for growth opportunities both within the UK and export markets either through brand licensing and product supply arrangement or wholly managed retail units.
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