Famous Brands resumes dividend payments as UK venture improves
Famous Brands, the casual-dining group that has been hobbled by its struggling Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK) business in the UK, says it will resume dividend payments to investors thanks in part to better sales from that chain. After buying GBK for £120m (R2.2bn) in 2016, Famous Brands has already written down the value of that business by more than R1bn. GBK has been struggling amid Brexit uncertainties, the rise of online food delivery and intense competition in the premium burger segment. But Famous Brands said on Wednesday GBK’s sales were improving, even though the chain’s operational losses widened in the 52 weeks to February 24. “Despite the constrained consumer-spend environment, GBK started to perform better as remedial measures implemented during the year gained momentum,” Famous Brands said. GBK’s like-for-like sales in the UK in the first six months fell by 9.7%, though in the second six months it recorded positive like-for like-sales of 1.4%. In the 12 weeks following th...
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