21 January 2025
Cooks Coffee Company Limited
("Cooks Coffee", the "Company" or the "Group")
Trading Update
Cooks Coffee Company (NZX:CCC; AQUIS:COOK), the international coffee focused café chain, is pleased to provide a trading update, covering the Company's Esquires (The Organic Coffee Company) branded franchised coffee focused systemwide stores in the UK & Ireland for the three months ended 31 December 2024, alongside an update for the nine months of the financial year to the same date. Systemwide sales are highly correlated to company income as all outlets in the UK and 15 of 18 stores in Ireland are franchised.
Highlights
| · | Nine Months to 31 December 2024: | |
| o | Group store sales up +26.2% at £25.5m | |
| o | UK store sales up 33.8%, at £17.7m and Ireland store sales up 11.9% at £7.8m | |
| o | Like-for-like sales: UK +2.8%, Ireland +5.1% | |
| · | In the 13 Weeks to 31 December 2024: | |
| o | Overall growth of +32.4% | |
| o | UK growth of +36.5%, with Ireland achieving growth of +23.9% | |
| · | 87 Group sites in the UK and Ireland as at 31 December 2024, up from 71 at 31 December 2023 | |
| · | Continued positive operating cash flow underpinned by strong trading momentum | |
| · | Strong pipeline of new stores with more than 6 further outlets expected to open before the end of the financial year | |
| · | Board and finance department strengthened in the period with appointment of Katherine Scott as Chief Financial Officer | |
During the period, Esquires Coffee House Ireland Ltd (Esquires) announced a significant partnership with Dairygold Agri Business Limited (Dairygold). Under this agreement, Esquires will operate and manage four cafés located within Dairygold's Co-Op Superstores across Ireland. Additionally, Esquires Coffee's Caerphilly branch in Wales was honoured with the title of "Best Ethical Coffee Enterprise" at the esteemed Welsh SME News Awards.
Aiden Keegan, CEO of Cooks Coffee Company, said: "We are proud to see strong sales growth across our existing coffee stores and newest locations. The performance in FY25 so far highlights the incredible dedication of our team and the passion of our regional developers & franchise partners. As previously reported, the pipeline of new stores is solid and the Company expects that it will continue to grow the number of Esquires outlets operating in UK & Ireland by the end of March 2025 and we expect to have more than 100 stores operating by the end of 2025. Given the strong trading momentum in the business, we remain confident about the future prospects of the Group and view the future with optimism."
Enquiries:
| Cooks Coffee Company Limited | +64 21 702 509 (New Zealand) |
| Keith Jackson (Executive Chairman) Aiden Keegan (Chief Executive) | keith.jackson@cookscoffeecompany.com |
| | +44 (0) 7980 608 440 (UK) aiden@esquirescoffee.co.uk
+44 (0) 20 3934 6630 (UK) |
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| IFC Advisory Limited (Financial PR & IR) | +44 (0) 20 3934 6630 |
| Tim Metcalfe, Graham Herring, Florence Chandler
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| Oberon Capital (AQSE Corporate Adviser and Broker) | +44 (0) 20 3179 5300 |
| Nick Lovering, Adam Pollock, Mike Seabrook | |
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