Tim Hortons’ sales heat up as workers fill offices
In one of the surest signs Canadian workers are returning to downtown offices, Tim Hortons says sales at its “super urban” restaurants are rebounding to near prepandemic levels.
The coffee and doughnut chain’s parent company Restaurant Brands International Inc. said Tuesday sales at its downtown locations jumped 30 per cent in its latest quarter compared with last year.
Tim Hortons’ inner-city coffee shops, often located near office towers and in food courts, were hit hardest by the work-from-home trend.
Restaurant Brands CEO José Cil called the turnaround at these locations a “testament to the improvement in mobility.”
“We saw accelerating underlying sales trends throughout the quarter as restrictions eased across the country and mobility increased,” he said, during a call with analysts.
“Comparable sales at our super urban locations grew nearly 30 per cent year over year during the quarter, with each month growing faster than the prior.”
Tim Hortons posted “especially strong results” in March with comparable sales improving weekly, Cil said.
Despite the sales growth, the restaurant is also seeing rising input costs, pushing up some menu prices.
“We are seeing a significant increase in commodity volatility, leading to elevated levels of inflation,” Restaurant Brands chief operating officer, Josh Kobza, said during the conference call.
“Given the fact that we generally take a pass-through approach, inflation has increased both our revenues and expenses.”
His comments came as Restaurant Brands, which also includes Burger King, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and Firehouse Subs, reported its net income attributable to common shareholders totalled $183 million (U.S.) in its first quarter, up from $179 million a year earlier.
The company said its profit amounted to 59 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended March 31 compared with 58 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, totalled $1.45 billion, up from $1.26 billion in the same quarter last year.
Comparable sales at Tim Hortons rose 8.4 per cent, while Burger King gained 10.3 per cent. Comparable sales at Popeyes fell 3.0 per cent and Firehouse Subs added 4.2 per cent.
Meanwhile, Tim Hortons also hosted its first investor day on Tuesday, which included details on the brand’s business and growth plans.