Johannesburg - Spur Corporation says sales across its outlets in SA and abroad gained 12.9 percent to R6.97 billion in the year to June.
The group says in a statement published on Thursday that its headline earnings gained 15.9 percent to R164 million with headline earnings per share growing 11.9 percent to 170.9 cents.
During the year, Spur opened 84 new outlets, taking its global restaurant base to 575.
Local sales gained 11.7 percent to R600 million while international revenue declined 38.4 percent to R137.4 million as Spur continued to exit some markets. Group revenue from continuing operations increased 3.4 percent to R633.1 million.
CEO Pierre van Tonder says the group’s brands performed well despite lower consumer spending and benefited from new restaurant openings. However, the impact of the widespread drought in South Africa and the deterioration of the rand, together with aggressive discounting by competitors, placed pressure on margins.
Panarottis Pizza Pasta grew restaurant sales by 18 percent, Spur Steak Ranches by 6.2 percent, John Dory’s by 17.7 percent and The Hussar Grill by 51.8 percent. The company also expanded its RocoMamas base. The smashburger joint saw 33 restaurants added to its base, taking the total to 42.
Spur adds 13 non-performing Captain DoRegos outlets were closed and sales declined by 3.3 percent, reflecting the tough trading conditions in the lower-income market.
The company also notes it launched upmarket Italian restaurant brand, Casa Bella, and two outlets were opened during the year. This, it says, is a bid to capitalise on the growing demand for authentic Italian cuisine, as well as the its knowledge of the pizza and pasta market.
Some 74 new restaurants were opened in SA, with 15 Spur outlets added, 7 Panarottis, 8 John Dory's, 5 Captain DoRegos , 4 The Hussar Grill, as well as the 33 RocoMamas and 2 Casa Bella brands.
Franchisees invested over R330 million in the 2016 financial year in opening, relocating and revamping restaurants.
During the year, Spur decided to focus its international operations primarily on Africa and Australia, and ceased trading in the UK and Ireland. As a result, the remaining eight restaurants in the UK and Ireland were closed.
Ten international outlets were opened across Africa, Mauritius and Australia, bringing the total restaurant base outside South Africa to 58. These include the first international outlets for The Hussar Grill in Zambia and RocoMamas in Namibia.
Spur, which declared a 140c a share dividend - a 6.1 percent increase, will open 28 restaurants across all brands in South Africa in the next 12 months. This is despite slowing economic growth.
Internationally, 9 new franchised outlets are planned, including the first Spur outlets in New Zealand and Ethiopia, and additional restaurants in Nigeria and Zimbabwe.
Its international expansion of RocoMamas will gain momentum with new outlets planned for Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kenya and Mauritius, it says.
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