Wed 3rd May 2017 - PizzaExpress reports UK and Ireland like-for-likes back in growth in first quarter of 2017 PizzaExpress reports UK and Ireland like-for-likes back in growth in first quarter of 2017: PizzaExpress has reported like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland are back in growth in the first quarter of 2017 although the market remained “challenging”. The company also said actions were in place to help mitigate UK sector-wide cost pressures. PizzaExpress saw like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland fall 0.9% in the year ended 1 January 2017, which it said reflected a broader slowdown in the casual dining market. Group turnover grew by 9.8% to £509.7m compared with £464.1m the previous year. Group Ebitda increased 1.1% to £102.6m (2016: £101.4m). It said its estate in the UK and Ireland continued to grow with 16 openings. The company said the international business had performed well and had extended the estate with 21 site openings, including four franchises. Chief executive Richard Hodgson said: “2016 was a good year for PizzaExpress, with our international business delivering particularly strong results, and our UK and Ireland business giving a resilient performance despite a challenging market environment. I am pleased to say that both our group turnover and Ebitda were ahead of last year. We continued to expand the PizzaExpress estate in the UK and Ireland, opening 16 new restaurants as well as investing in our existing sites to ensure they remain fresh and attractive to our customers. It has also never been more important to innovate in line with evolving consumer tastes, which is why we have focused on updating our menu seasonally, keeping it exciting and relevant. Throughout 2016, we continued to seek ways to broaden our channels and increase our customer base. We entered a partnership with Deliveroo so that we could participate more fully in the UK’s rapidly growing home delivery market – an exciting opportunity for us. Furthermore, we expanded our retail range, which continues to be popular with consumers. International growth continues to be a key pillar of PizzaExpress’ business strategy. In 2016, we opened 21 international sites, including a restaurant in Singapore, a new market for PizzaExpress. Mainland China, where we now operate 34 restaurants largely under the PizzaMarzano brand, remains an important focus area. China is a fast evolving market and we recognise that it is imperative to keep up with changing consumer tastes, ensuring our offering, especially our menu, stays relevant. We have had a good start to this year. We have achieved like-for-like sales growth in the UK and Ireland despite the market backdrop. Our international business has been performing well and we have opened several new sites already, with more in the pipeline for the rest of the year. Looking ahead, we anticipate the UK market to remain challenging throughout 2017 and expect the unprecedented cost inflation impacting our sector to continue. Despite this, we believe in our business strategy and the strength of our offer. We will continue to drive innovation and efficiency in the UK, while also focusing on growing our international estate. We are confident that PizzaExpress will deliver further progress in the year ahead.”