Loungers reports like-for-like sales up 5.4%: Loungers, the operator of 157 neighbourhood cafe-bar restaurants that trade under the Lounge and Cosy Club brands, has reported like-for-like sales grew 5.4% for the 24 weeks ending 6 October 2019. Total revenue for the period was up 22% over the prior year, to £79.8m. Over the course of the period, the group opened ten sites, comprising eight Lounges and two Cosy Clubs, taking the portfolio to 156 sites as of 6 October 2019. Since then, the group’s 27th Cosy Club opened in Basingstoke last week, and a further three sites are scheduled to open before the end of the month. These comprise of a Cosy Club in Plymouth and Lounges in Carmarthen and Buxton. The group said it was on track to open 25 sites in the financial year and the pipeline remains “strong”. Chief executive Nick Collins said: “Both Lounge and Cosy Club have continued to perform well, reflecting the growing appeal of our customer offer in the communities in which we serve. Our broad, value for money proposition across multiple occasions underpins the resilience of our trading and leaves us well placed to continue to outperform the market. We remain confident of delivering another year of positive progress for the group and are encouraged by the performance of our new openings.” Loungers said it expects to announce its half-year results on Wednesday, 4 December.

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