Loungers have reported record trading for December with like-for-like sales up 8.6% for the month and year-on-year net sales up 49.6% to £3.458m. Significantly net sales for the 41-strong group’s six Cosy Club sites exceeded £1m and accounted for 30.8% of overall sales.
Loungers MD Alex Reilley said, “We’re extremely pleased to report another December of strong LFL sales and have seen countless records, at both unit and company level, broken in the process.”
Cosy Clubs
He continued, “The performance of the Cosy Clubs is particularly noteworthy and is a strong sign of the Cosy Club brand really beginning to find its groove.”
Reilley confirmed that a deal for a Cosy Club site in Bristol has been agreed and is with solicitors and that the group has actively stepped up its search for more opportunities for the Cosy Club brand.
“We’ve spent a lot of time in the last 12 months finessing the Cosy Club brand which, coupled with how strongly the Cosy Clubs have traded in the last few months, means we feel ready to put our foot down a little more.
“The Lounge brand will continue to remain the main growth engine for the business but, of the 15 openings we have planned this year, we’d like 2 or 3 to be Cosy Clubs. We conservatively believe there’s potential for at least 70 Cosy Club sites nationally on top of 250+ potential Lounge sites.”
Next up for Loungers is the opening of Pico Lounge in Glossop on 22nd January.
Nick Collins steps up to COO
Loungers has also announced that current finance director Nick Collins is to step up to chief operating officer (COO).
Collins, who became Loungers’ first FD when he in joined in January 2012, will become the group’s first COO, although he will not start his new role until a replacement finance director has been appointed.
Previous to joining Loungers, Collins had been the FD at Capital Pub Co, up to the point it was sold to Greene King in 2011, and prior to that he had been co-founder and managing director of gourmet sandwich chain Fuzzy’s Grub.
2017 target of 90 sites
It is understood that the Loungers board took the decision to create the COO role with Collins firmly in mind as the business looks to push through the 50-site barrier and beyond to their 2017 target of 90 sites.
Speaking of the appointment, Loungers MD Alex Reilley said, “Since joining Loungers, Nick has completely immersed himself in every aspect of the business and has proven himself to be so much more than just an excellent FD.
“He’s extremely well-liked and immensely respected within the organisation and he totally ‘gets’ the culture of the business and what we want to achieve, and he now has an even more significant role to play in helping the business reach its goals. His entrepreneurial background coupled with his financial understanding of Loungers makes him the perfect fit for the COO role and the board is delighted that he’s making the step up.”