Shakey’s income up 10% as sales grow across stores

Earnings of Shakey’s Pizza Asia Ventures, Inc. (SPAVI) grew 10% in 2019 on the back of an 11% growth in sales across its network.

In a statement on Monday, the operator of pizza and chicken food chains said its earnings last year stood at P923 million, higher than the previous year’s P841 million.

But accounting for the impact of implementing a new accounting standard, which required accelerating the recognition of non-cash expenses, the growth in the company’s earnings is reduced to a 2% uptick to P862 million.

Systemwide sales drove the bigger bottomline last year, recording an 11% increase to P10.4 billion, which includes sales growth in company-owned and franchised stores.

Same-store sales growth, or the measure of sales growth from existing stores, stood at 1%.

SPAVI opened 18 new Shakey’s stores and seven new Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken stores in 2019, ending the year with 246 Shakey’s and 30 Peri-Peri outlets.

At present time, the company is keeping “partial delivery and carry-out operations” in some of its stores in light of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the Luzon-wide quarantine.

“This is an extraordinary time, but we are able to manage through by prioritizing a strong cash and liquidity position, and slowly increasing delivery and carry-out accessibility,” SPAVI President and Chief Executive Officer Vicente P. Gregorio said in the statement.

SPAVI stores are on shortened hours and using limited menus, but it looks to reopen more stores in the coming weeks.

“Amidst the short-term disruptions, we are also readying ourselves to bounce back in what we believe will be a new ‘post COVID’ world where a strong brand and delivery presence is key,” Mr. Gregorio said.

“Though the full effects of COVID remain unknown, we are firmly in this business for the long run benefit of all our stakeholders, including our employees and our guests, and we believe that the structural growth story of dining out in the Philippines is still intact,” he added.

Shares in SPAVI at the stock exchange climbed six centavos or 1.24% to P4.90 each on Monday. — Denise A. Valdez