Peach remains confident after 'difficult' year

Group EBITDA for the Oxfordshire-based group also dropped, by 10 per cent to £1.54m, while profit after taxation and minority interests amounted to just £39,025, compared with £225,115 a year earlier.​​But Peach remains confident, referring to 2012 as a ‘successful trading year’ in a recent financial statement. 

“This was a difficult trading period industry-wide, as we experienced economic recession coupled with the wettest summer on record,” reads the statement. “In January, we finalised a restructuring of our loans from Natwest which had the effect of  raising another £600,000 of funding.

“Natwest remain committed to supporting the growth of Peach and the directors remain confident in their ability to successfully find and operate great pubs.”

Peaches 22​

Speaking of progression in the rest of this year and beyond, Peach added: “We aim for steady growth based on our existing principles, sharing the fruits of our labour with our key operators, and retaining sufficient profits to grow and develop our business with the support of our banking and property partners.

“Expect, one, two or three more pubs in 2013 – and only great ones.

“Our medium-term goal remains ‘Peaches 22’ – 22 great pubs with shared ownership and with six to eight partners around each Peach table.”

Trading upturn​

Earlier this year, Peach was given the go-ahead to turn an Art Deco-style townhouse in Edgbaston, Birmingham, into its 17th pub​​ in a £1m development.

Peach Pub Company, run by Lee Cash and Hamish Stoddart, operates all 17 pubs with the split of trade across the Group roughly 50/50 between food and drink.

Cash, who co-founded Peach in 2003,​​told our sister title M&C Report yesterday that he feels there’s been a ‘sea change’ in consumer confidence, triggering a much-needed upturn in trading performance.