Franchise Brands 'pleased' with progress made in H1

Multi-brand franchise business Franchise Brands said on Monday that it was "pleased" with the progress it had made over the past six months.

Franchise said system sales at its Metro Rod wing had returned to their "strong" pre-Covid growth levels, increasing by 21% compared to the first half of 2020 and 17% compared to the first half of 2019 to end on record system sales of £23.8m for the six months ended 30 June.

The AIM-listed group stated growth accelerated during the period as restrictions were eased, resulting in record system sales in June of £4.3m, an increase of 41% year-on-year.

Willow Pumps, acquired by the group in October 2019, was more impacted by lockdown. However, the firm said invoiced sales increased around 9% year-on-year.

Franchise's B2C division also performed "strongly", with 40 new franchisees recruited in the half, taking the group's total number of B2C franchisees to 393.

Chairman Stephen Hemsley said: "I have been pleased by the speed at which the demand for our services has grown as the lockdown restrictions have been lifted.

"Throughout the pandemic, I have been particularly encouraged by the resilience of our franchisees. Their entrepreneurial spirit and continued commitment to serve our customers gives me huge confidence in the future of Franchise Brands."

As of 1315 BST, Franchise shares were down 2.0% at 147.49p.