TAJ PAMODZI HOTEL TURNOVER DROPS
TAJ Pamodzi Hotel Plc’s total turnover has declined to
K15.3 million as at March 2021 compared to K83.6 million recorded the previous year due to impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The hotel remains optimistic post the epidemic and slow recovery of the industry was expected worldwide.
This is according to the abridged financial results for the year ended March 31, 2021 posted on the Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE).
It indicated that the Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) for the year was negative K29.3 million compared to previous year of K2.2 million.
“Overall this contributed to a loss after tax for the year K3.6 million as compared to a loss of K4.4 million in the previous year.
“The current year period is not comparable to the previous year due to the covid-19 pandemic; the hotel was closed for six months period and no revenue
earned for that period,” the statement indicated.
It stated that the hotel was temporarily closed during the period April 2020 to September 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic; hence no revenue was earned on room income, food and beverage income during that period.
“The room income segment decreased due to lower number of delegations at the hotel. In addition, the hotel saw a reduction in the corporate income and transients income segments over the last year due to the worldwide pandemic and reduced travel.
“Food and beverage income decreased due to Covid-19 lock down restrictions that affected Banquet and restaurant revenue,” the statement indicated.
It stated that management had and would however be doing everything in their abilities to minimize expenses and increase revenues in the long run so as to bring the company to profitability.
Having cut expenses in the year, going forward management, It stated that they would continue to control expenses, to reach the most efficient operation, and minimize losses in the foreseeable future.
“We aim to drive growth through our operations. Pamodzi has embarked on a strategy to maintain and enhance operational efficiency while remaining focused on delivering a high-quality service that is unrivalled on the Zambian market. “We remain committed to ensuring that we provide a safe operating environment during this Covid-19 pandemic to serve the needs of our customers,” the statement