Tortilla reports UK like-for-like growth of 10% in July, half-year revenue increases to £35.4m: Tortilla, the UK’s largest fast-casual Mexican restaurant brand, has said its strong trading momentum has continued with UK like-for-like growth of around 10% in July. It comes as the group reported revenue increased to £35.4m for the year ending 29 June 2025, up £3.9m on 2024, with UK like-for-like growth of 5.0%. UK like-for-like revenue growth was 5.9% for the first quarter and 4.2% for the second quarter against the industry benchmark, CGA Coffer, which reported like-for-like revenue declines of 2.5% and 3.4% respectively. Tortilla said the franchise network is performing strongly with like-for-like revenue growth of 12.8% for the UK and 16.8% for the UAE. Weekly sales records were achieved in 13 locations across these markets. The group said self-ordering kiosks continue to be rolled out at pace with 32 locations now live as part of its ongoing strategic commitment to investing in technology. In France, contractors are now on site in the planned refurbishment locations and the company expect the majority of sites to have been transformed to Tortilla by the end of the year. Adjusted Ebitda (pre-IFRS) was £1.2m. The UK business generated a gain of £2.4m, 33% higher than last year (2024: £1.8m) while the French business contributed a loss of £1.2m in the period, “as we continue to invest for long-term growth and brand building across the continent”. Group net debt (pre-IFRS 16) was £9.8m at period end, and Tortilla said year-end group net debt was expected to be in-line with market expectations. As previously reported, Tortilla refinanced its debt facilities with Santander in June, to support the group with the next phase of growth. Tortilla stated: “The group has delivered a robust trading performance through the first half of the year, with strong momentum continuing into the second half. Recent trading has reflected a positive customer response to our summer menu initiatives and select promotion activity, which is pleasing against what continues to be a challenging wider market back-drop. The board expects the group's full-year results to be in line with market expectations.” Chief executive Andy Naylor said: “I'm pleased to report that Tortilla has delivered a strong first half, continuing the positive momentum across the business. Our UK operations are outperforming the wider sector and our like-for-like sales remained resilient through the spring and early summer, despite the impact of unusually hot weather. Our strategic initiatives to enhance the food offer and sharpen brand identity are clearly resonating with customers. The recent launch of our summer menu, featuring salads and protein pots, has been particularly well received and have supported UK like-for-like growth of around 10% in July. Our franchise estate is also trading well, and we continue to expand our footprint with new openings across the UK. We're especially excited to open our first site in Abu Dhabi in early August. The conversion project in France is now underway, marking the first step in our pan-European growth strategy. We're excited to introduce the Tortilla brand to this new market as we expand our presence across the continent.” Tortilla features in the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book, the next edition of which will be sent to Premium Club subscribers on Friday (8 August) and feature 1,151 companies. Tortilla's turnover of £68.0m for the year ending 31 December 2024 is the 188th highest in the database. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription.

Meaningful Vision – rate of new openings slows, ‘daypart trends shifting’: The rate of new openings has slowed in the first half of 2025, with the pizza segment still in decline, according to analysis by Meaningful Vision. Despite a similar opening rate across both quarters of 2025, overall, the number of new openings, up by 1% in total, was less than half the 2.5% rise in the same period in 2024. Store openings across all fast food segments have slowed down, with the exception of the burger segment, which maintained the same pace of openings (2.6%) as in 2024. Pizza was the only segment to register a decline in numbers during the first half of 2025 (down 0.7%). Daypart trends are shifting, according to the analysis, as more consumers adopt flexible schedules or hybrid working patterns. Breakfast traffic has slowed, while the afternoon period (3pm-6pm) – which was declining in 2024 – is now the fastest growing. Dinner (6pm to 9pm) also improved versus last year. Late evening remains in negative territory (down 3.2%) – albeit, this daypart has seen declines narrow considerably compared with the same period last year (down 16.7%). London footfall dipped, but strong second quarter and fast-food growth lifted national figures above 2024 levels: Despite traditionally having led footfall growth regionally, the capital city recorded a decline in traffic for the first time since the post-covid recovery period. By contrast, Northern Ireland remains the fastest growing region, accelerating further in 2025, followed by the south, Wales and Scotland. Overall, footfall so far in 2025 has performed better than in the first six months of last year (down 0.5% versus a 1.2% fall in 2024), driven mainly by footfall growth within fast food (up 0.8% versus a 0.9% decline in 2024). Overall like-for-like guest numbers are still declining, even in fast food (down 1.3%), as traffic growth has been outpaced by new openings. In the first half of 2025, restaurants increased the number of promotional offers by 23%, maintaining a similar pace to the 25% growth seen in 2024. This means the volume of promotions has grown by nearly 50% over two years. The average discount remains stable at 25%. Meaningful Vision chief executive Maria Vanifatova said: “The fact we’re seeing traffic growth outpaced by new openings reflects a typical market pattern in which new store openings cannibalise traffic from existing locations. Initially, chains expand into prime central areas with high turnover, while in the later stages smaller outlets are opened in less populated areas, reducing per store averages.”