Luminar struggles as revellers shun clubs
NIGHTCLUB group Luminar, which operates the brands Oceana and Liquid as well as owning Birmingham’s Jam House, has announced a statutory full-year loss of more than £120m, indicating the difficult position leisure businesses have faced during recession.
The group, which has 87 venues around the country, saw a £4.4m pre-tax profit – down from £20.9m in 2009 – wiped out by exceptional costs totalling £127.8m.
Today’s coincided with the departure of finance director Robert McDonald, who is being replaced by Philip Bowcock.
Mr Bowcock joins from Barratt Developments, where he worked as group financial controller. Prior to working for the housing group, he held senior finance roles at Tesco and Hilton Group.
In its full results statement today, Luminar said sales had dipped 9.9% compared with 2009 and the second half of the year had seen a 15.4% decline.
Average sales per customer increased to £12.46 from last year’s £12.29 but this was little comfort.
On a positive note, the firm said its cost reduction programme had helped trim £6m off operating costs, partly aided by the disposal of four clubs, while capital investment was cut from £38.1m to £4.2m.
The group is looking to cut a further £10m from its operating costs in the current year.
Cash generation and equity issue reduced net borrowing by 35% to £92.6m and the firm said it was continuing to trade within debt covenant tests.
Sales for the first 10 weeks of the current year underline how difficult the recovery will be for the group, standing at 19.4% below the previous year on a same outlet basis.
Simon Douglas, group chief executive, said: “Luminar has a very good estate and dedicated people. Whilst our marketplace remains challenging, we believe there is a substantial opportunity to leverage Luminar’s many strengths.
“By focusing on the operational basics and embracing more modern marketing methods, we will engage and entertain our customers and ensure our offer remains relevant. We are confident that this more focused strategy, well executed, will restore value to our shareholders over time.”
