KFC helps lift Restaurant Brand sales

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Fairfax Media

SALES LIFT: KFC sales continued to grow in the first quarter.

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Restaurant Brands lifted first quarter sales 4.2 percent from a year earlier, as the KFC brand continued sustained growth while Starbucks Coffee and Pizza Hut sales slipped.

Total sales across the company's three brands for the 12 weeks to May 24 were $75.9 million, an increase of 4.2 percent on the equivalent period last year. Same store sales increased 6.3 percent.

At KFC, sales rose $4.3m for the quarter to a total of $54.3m, representing an 8.5 percent increase on the prior year and 10.7 percent on a same store sales basis, the company said today.

Factors which helped maintain sales momentum included an ongoing transformation programme, with consistency in store operations, wider menu options and a more focused approach to marketing.

Three stores were closed for part of the quarter for transformation, with building also starting at KFC Levin which was extensively damaged by fire.

A new KFC store opened in Pt Chevalier, Auckland in May, taking store numbers to 86, and building of a new store in Tauranga started in April.

At Pizza Hut, total sales were down 5.6 percent on the prior year to $14.6m, with same store sales down 4.1 percent.

While "slightly disappointing", given the sales growth for the previous four quarters, it was worth noting the latest quarter sales were compared to a 5.2 percent same store sales increase a year earlier when Tuscani Pasta was launched, Restaurant Brands said.

Store numbers were stable at 91 for the quarter, down one on last year. Starbucks Coffee quarterly sales fell 4.7 percent to $6.9m, down 1.8 percent on a same store sales basis. The sales decline had slowed and was expected to revert back to same store sales growth during the year as work on new promotions and customer offers continued, the company said. Store numbers fell by one during the quarter taking store numbers to 40, two down on last year.

- NZPA