Hollywood Bowl posts record half-year revenue

(Sharecast News) - Hollywood Bowl posted record group revenue of £129.2m for the six months ended 31 March on Wednesday, marking an 8.4% increase on the prior year, as continued investment in estate quality and customer experience drove strong performances across both the UK and Canadian markets. The FTSE 250 company said like-for-like revenue rose 2.1%, despite a modest drag from calendar effects including Easter timing and an additional leap year day.

UK revenue rose 4.7% to £108.2m, supported by a 1.3% increase in like-for-like sales and the opening of three new centres in Swindon, Preston, and Inverness.

The group said it was planning to open two further UK centres in the second half, and completed four refurbishments during the first half, with one more scheduled before year-end.

Canadian revenue rose 40.8% at constant currency to CAD 38m (£21.1m), with like-for-like revenue up 13.6%.

Growth was underpinned by strong customer demand and new openings in Kanata and Calgary.

Construction of an additional centre at Christy's Corner in Alberta was set to begin in the second half.

The Canadian business also completed two refurbishments, with four more planned before the year-end.

Hollywood Bowl said it completed a £10m share buyback in April, cancelling over 3.7 million shares.

With net cash of £22.7m and an undrawn £25m revolving credit facility, Hollywood Bowl said its financial position remained robust.

Management reiterated its commitment to expanding the estate to 130 centres by 2035.

Despite cost pressures from recent UK wage and tax changes - expected to impact annualised costs by around £1.2m - the group said it was well positioned to manage these through a low labour-to-revenue ratio and a strong cost culture.

It also noted that recently-announced tariffs were expected to have no material impact on operations.

Hollywood Bowl said it remained confident in its outlook for the 2025 financial year, supported by resilient consumer demand for affordable, family-friendly leisure experiences and sustained momentum in both core markets.

"We are pleased with our half year performance, with results in line with our expectations, reflecting the ongoing demand for fun leisure activities and the attraction of bowling as an affordable, inclusive experience that everyone can enjoy," said chief executive officer Stephen Burns.

"We have made excellent progress in executing our growth strategy, opening five new centres, and upgrading six centres across the UK and Canada.

"Our teams work extremely hard to deliver high-quality experiences and we continue to invest in growing our estate and enhancing our industry-leading proposition, while carefully controlling costs and cash."

At 0844 BST, shares in Hollywood Bowl Group were up 3.18% at 276p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.