Prezzo cooks up expansion drive

By TAMSIN BROWN
Updated: 04:38 EST, 7 April 2011

Prezzo said it expected to add at least another 20 sites this year to its 160-strong chain after growing profits last year by 37 per cent.

The Italian restaurant chain took its foot off the expansion pedal in 2009 when it opened just two outlets but in 2010 it opened 20 restaurants, helped by the purchase of 11 leasehold sites from Caffe uno for £3.1million.

The expansion, which included new restaurants in city-centre locations in Cardiff, Glasgow, Aberdeen and London helped lift revenues 15 per cent to £104.8million.

Pre-tax profits climbed to £14million from £10.2million and Prezzo (which last month launched a new range of pizzas by celebrity chef Aldo Zilli, pictured) lifted its dividend payment to 0.225p a share from 0.2p.

Chairman Michael Carlton said 2011 had started in an ‘encouraging fashion’. It has already forked out £550,000 for another six restaurants from Caffe uno and Carlton said with its strong development pipeline it was confident of serving up a positive outcome for the year. 

Shares in the restaurant group rose 1p to 65.25p as analysts upgraded their forecasts on the back of the better-than-expected numbers.