REG - Tortilla Mexcn.Grill - Trading Update

Tortilla Mexican GrillAnnouncement

10/01/2022 07:05

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RNS Number : 8411X  Tortilla Mexican Grill PLC  10 January 2022

10 January 2022

Tortilla Mexican Grill plc

("Tortilla" or the "Group")

Trading Update

A very strong FY21 performance underpinned by a year of transformational
growth

Tortilla, the largest and most successful fast-casual Mexican restaurant group
in the UK, provides a Trading Update in respect of the financial year ended 2
January 2022 (the "Period").

 

Highlights

 

·    Group revenue increased 79% to £48.1m (FY20: £26.8m; FY19: £35.4m)

·      UK like-for-like (LFL) revenue versus 2019 increased by 23.8%
despite the numerous lockdowns/restrictions.  Excluding Q1, which was
significantly impacted by lockdowns, LFL revenue increased by 30.3% versus
FY19

·      Further growth was driven by the addition of seven UK
company-operated restaurants and two UK franchise restaurants, taking
Tortilla's estate to 64 stores globally

 

·    FY21 revenue and profits are materially ahead of our expectations
following stronger trading in Q4, despite the emergence of the Omicron variant
of Covid-19

 

·    Strong cash generation resulted in net cash at the year end

 

·    Launch of partnership with Merlin Entertainments at Chessington World
of Adventures, as well as the opening of two further sites in partnership with
SSP Group plc at Gatwick Airport and Skelton Lakes motorway services

 

·    Continued investment in our people by increasing our employee pay
rates and strengthening the senior management team

 

·    Admission of the Group to AIM in October 2021, raising gross proceeds
of £5.0m to accelerate growth plans

 

·    Strong confidence in outlook and ability to deliver in line with
expectations for FY22

 

Tortilla delivered excellent performance during the FY21 financial year,
achieving a 79% increase in Group revenue to £48.1m, and a 36% increase when
compared with FY19 revenues.

 

This was driven by growing customer demand across all the Group's channels of
eat in, take away and delivery, and underpinned by both the increasingly
relevant Tortilla brand and the continued roll-out of new sites in line with
the Group's growth strategy. Tortilla is known for its customisable,
high-quality, fresh products.

 

During the period, Tortilla opened new stores in Edinburgh, Exeter and
Windsor, new delivery kitchens in Balham, Manchester and Brent Cross, and
launched the first Tortilla site in partnership with Merlin Entertainments,
taking the total company-run locations to 51.

 

 

The Group's delivery channel went from strength to strength during the year,
supported by an increase in the number of delivery kitchens to five. An
important pillar of Tortilla's multichannel model, delivery now comprises more
than 30% of total Group revenue.

 

Note: FY21 figures are subject to audit

 

 

Current trading and outlook

 

Trading continues to be very positive despite the emergence of the Omicron
variant of Covid-19. The Board remains confident that the Group will perform
in line with expectations for FY22, as the reduced financial assistance from
the UK Government will be offset by reduced trading restrictions.

 

The Board also remains confident in the Group's ability to make good progress
against its store roll-out strategy to open 45 new sites in the next five
years.

 

 

Richard Morris, Chief Executive Officer of Tortilla, commented:

 

"We are delighted to have maintained the very strong trading momentum,
outlined at the time of our IPO, to achieve an excellent full year
performance. This was supported by the growing appeal of our proposition and
the continued expansion of the Tortilla brand. Once again, the adaptability of
Tortilla's offer supported us through the latter stages of the year to achieve
a strong performance across both delivery and take away.

 

"In addition to delivering this very strong financial growth, we were pleased
to achieve progress against a number of strategic objectives, including the
launch and development of various partnerships, and growing our estate of
delivery kitchens and traditional bricks and mortar locations, to meet the
increasing customer preference for delivery of high-quality
Californian-inspired Mexican cuisine."

 

 

ENQUIRIES

 

 Tortilla Mexican Grill PLC                                Via Hudson Sandler
 Emma Woods, Non-Executive Chair
 Richard Morris, CEO
 Andy Naylor, CFO

 Liberum Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser, Sole Broker)  Tel: 020 3100 2222
 Andrew Godber
 Edward Thomas
 Christopher Whitaker
 Nikhil Varghese

 Hudson Sandler (Public Relations)                         Tel: 020 7796 4133
 Alex Brennan                                              tortilla@hudsonsandler.com (mailto:tortilla@hudsonsandler.com)
 Wendy Baker
 Lucy Wollam
 Charlotte Cobb

 

For further information, visit tortillagroup.co.uk
(https://tortillagroup.co.uk/)

 

 

NOTES TO EDITORS

 

Tortilla is the largest and most successful fast-casual Mexican restaurant
group in the UK specialising in the sale of freshly made Californian-inspired
Mexican cuisine. The Group has 64 sites worldwide, comprising 51 sites in the
UK operated by the Group, three sites franchised to SSP Group in the UK, and
10 franchised sites in the Middle East.

 

The Group was founded in 2007 by Brandon Stephens, originally from California
who, upon his arrival in London in 2003, found it difficult to satisfy his
desire for quality burritos and tacos. As a result, Brandon established
Tortilla with a mission of offering customers freshly prepared, customisable,
and authentic Californian-inspired Mexican food.

 

The brand is synonymous with an energetic, vibrant culture, and with providing
a great value-for-money proposition. It embraces fast-growing sector trends
(including eating out, healthy eating, provenance, ethnic cuisine, delivery)
across a variety of locations, through a differentiated product offering which
is popular with a broad customer base, and a clearly defined multi-channel
marketing strategy. It benefits from flexible site locations and formats, and
a scalable central infrastructure.

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