Trading statement

The Restaurant Group plc

Trading statement

At the AGM of The Restaurant Group plc (the Group), to be held later today, Debbie Hewitt, Chairman, will provide the following trading update:

Current trading

Our strategic initiatives are driving improved performance in our Leisure business in a market in which like-for-like sales remain challenging.

Like-for-like sales for the 20 weeks ended 20 May 2018 declined 4.3% and total sales declined 3.1%. Trading in the period was heavily impacted by the adverse weather and on an underlying basis, excluding the impact of snow, like-for-like sales were down 3.1%.

In the first seven weeks of the second quarter like-for-like sales declined 1.8% as we began to lap the significant price investments made last year in order to re-establish our value credentials in our Leisure business.

Our Pubs and Concessions businesses continue to outperform the market.

Property

During the first 20 weeks we have opened nine new units.

The pipeline of new openings within our Pubs business has been further strengthened with the acquisition of four pubs from Ribble Valley Inns. Including these we now expect to open around 10 pubs this year.

Strong progress has been made in our Concessions business with expansion into new travel hubs. We now expect to open at least 12 new concession sites this year.

We have successfully exited a further five closed sites in 2018 bringing the number of sites exited to 26 out of 41 closed sites.

Outlook

We are comfortable with the performance in the first 20 weeks of the current financial year and expect to see further benefit from our strategic initiatives as the year progresses.

We expect to deliver results for the full year in-line with current market expectations.

Enquiries:

Notes:

1. The Restaurant Group plc operates 502 restaurants and pub restaurants throughout the UK. Its principal trading brands are Frankie & Benny's, Chiquito, Coast to Coast and Brunning & Price pubs. It also operates a multi-brand Concessions business which trades principally in UK airports.

2. This statement is based on information sourced from management accounts.

3. Statements made in this announcement that look forward in time or that express management's beliefs, expectations or estimates regarding future occurrences are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements reflect the Group's current expectations concerning future events and actual results may differ materially from current expectations or historical results.