Costa Coffee owner '˜cautious' despite rise in profits
Costa Coffee owner Whitbread has cheered a jump in annual profit, but said it remains 'cautious' amid forecasts for a tougher year ahead.
The group reported a 6.2 per cent rise in underlying pre-tax profits for the 52 weeks to 2 March to £565.2 million, while total revenue increased by 8.2 per cent to £3.1 billion.
It comes as its Premier Inn and restaurants business chalked up a 7.4 per cent rise in full-year underlying operating profit to £468m, while the Costa unit saw a 5.3 per cent rise to £158m.
• READ MORE: Whitbread profits perked up by rising Costa sales
However, chief executive Alison Brittain said the company is steadying itself for the months ahead.
It comes as retailers start to prepare for a pullback in consumer spending due to rising inflation, caused by the post-Brexit vote collapse of the pound.
“Whilst we are only seven weeks into our new financial year, Premier Inn has had a good start to the year and Costa has also seen positive like-for-like sales growth, although we remain cautious and expect a tougher consumer environment than last year,” said Brittain.
UK inflation has risen to 2.3 per cent, but forecasts by the Bank of England expect that figure to rise to 2.7 per cent by the end of 2017, before peaking at 2.8 per cent in the first half of 2018 and easing to 2.4 per cent by 2019.
• READ MORE: Cost of living fears mount as inflation hits 2.3%
It comes as businesses start to pass on rising costs caused by the weaker pound following currency fluctuations in the wake of the Brexit vote, which has made imports more expensive.
If inflation continues to outpace wage growth, experts say consumers are likely to become more cautious about splashing out on leisure and other non-essential items.
In its trading update, Whitbread’s directors said they will continue to monitor the “risk of a wider macro-economic effect as a result of the UK leaving the EU, including foreign exchange and interest rate fluctuations.”
But Brittain said Whitbread will still be able to deliver “another year of good progress, in line with overall expectations”, as it pushes ahead with a £150m efficiency programme announced in November.