JD Wetherspoon predicts year-long sales decline

JD Wetherspoon chief executive John Hutson said sales across the group could decline for the next 12 months as its customers adjust to life under the smoking ban.

Speaking as Wetherspoon released its first interim management statement, Hutson confirmed that the pubco's like-for-like sales had dipped by one per cent in the 13 weeks to October 28.

"Looking at all the experiences of non-smoking regimes - New York, Ireland, Scotland - we would not be surprised if sales remained negative for the next year, before starting to recover," he added.

Predictably Wetherspoon's bar sales fell in the period, while Hutson said like-for-like sales growth was in the "double digit range". Margins dipped 0.6 per cent as the sales mix moved towards its food offer.

Noting the figures, Hutson said: "We said back in August if we could maintain the one per cent growth we saw then throughout the year we'd be happy. But the slight decline was predictable."

Wetherspoon pubs were in the middle of a transitional period, he said, and while it would be wrong to place too much emphasis on Scotland there were "encouraging signs" which suggested that non-smoking pubs would eventually build back their customer base and move forward.

"We're only 17 weeks into the ban and it's too early to predict exactly how it will go.

"Our pubs and their staff are working very hard to adapt to the changes the smoking ban has brought about and we're very positive about the longer term prospects of this business in a smoke-free environment," Hutson said.