Coffee chain is star performer as Brains’ profits up

ICONIC Cardiff brewer SA Brain & Co has toasted a healthy rise in profit and revenues, with its expanding coffee business Coffee#1 the stand-out performer.

The family-owned business, which employs around 2,200 people, saw revenues for the year to October 1, 2016, up 7% on the previous year to £135m, while operating profit was up 23% to £5.5m.

Its Coffee#1 chain, which directly employs 300, opened a further 14 venues over the last financial year, taking the total number of outlets to 76.

Revenues at Coffee#1 – which was recently named coffee chain of the year at the Cafe Life Awards for the seventh time in eight years – rose 28% during the year. Its sales now account for close to 20% of all SA Brain revenues.

Meanwhile, the firm’s managed pub estate grew by 3% in total compared to the previous year and by 1.5% on a likefor-like sales basis, outperforming the overall national pub market by around 0.8%.

SA Brain & Co chief executive Scott Waddington said: “A wide number of initiatives were undertaken during the year as we implement our five-year plan.

“I have been pleased with the progress made in the last 12 months and delighted by the customer reaction to our pub developments, coffee shops, new food offers and beers.”

However, the year has Brains selling off 13 pubs.

The latest figures come as Brains whittles down its search for a new multi-million-pound brewery, head office and visitor centre to two sites.

As reported in yesterday’s Echo, land at Leckwith and Cardiff Bay could be in contention as the business looks to move away from its existing city centre site, to make way for the massive Central Quay development. also seen