In a trading update, Oakman confirmed that the 10-strong Seafood Pub Company, which it acquired out of administration in March 2021, will move forward under the sole ownership and direction of Dermot King, Oakman’s former CEO.
Seafood Pub Company fell into administration in the summer of 2020 after failing to secure funding to help support it through the first Covid-19 lockdown.
Following the demerger, Oakman’s estate will comprise 33 operating sites with a further five in the pipeline.
As part of the trading update, Oakman also reported it has filed accounts for the financial year ending 2 July 2023.
Over the period, sales rose across the group by over 6% from £54.4m to £57.8m, and EBITDA was £1.8m.
Oakman also reports a strong end to the first half of financial year 2023/24 with sales over the Christmas trading period showing growth over the prior year.
For the five weeks ending on December 31 2023, the core Oakman Inns business delivered sales of £7.7m representing an increase of 9.5% on the prior year and like-for-like growth of 4.5%.
In addition, the group says it has made significant progress with respect to cost reduction and profit delivery.
“External trading conditions remain challenging. However, I am delighted with the way the whole team has come together to deliver significant profit recovery over the past six months,” says Peter Borg-Neal, Oakman's CEO and founder.
“The business is in great shape to meet the near-term challenges we face and to deliver significant growth in the medium-term.”
