Pizza Shit

[spygirl]

PizzaExpress debt in the spotlight

Casual-dining chain faces challenges in UK and overseas

https://www.ft.com/content/2658c49a-b919-11e9-8a88-aa6628ac896c

It was launched in Soho, London, in 1965 by restaurateur Peter Boizot and in 2014 was acquired for £900m by Hony Capital, a Chinese private equity group. 

In its 2018 accounts it reported net debt of £1.1bn, with interest charges of £93.1m, resulting in a pre-tax loss of £55m. 

Why in fucksake wld a Chinese PE outfit buy a pizza outfit in the UK? Other than they had a lot of bent money to flush.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/758382/pizza-express-group-revenue/

£543m gross revenue.

Assuming 50% margins, giving ~240m of gross profit. There'll be high labour costs AND ~£100m of interest to service.

Fucking nuts.

Leveraged buy out, loading debt onto the target need better rules.

Or, better, remove IR discounts from tax.

 

 

 

 

[lid]

Looks like they knead dough 

[spygirl]

35 minutes ago, DTMark said:

Or better still, try having some more conventional pizzas - I can't imagine things like pine nuts and artichokes spring to mind as obvious topping choices.

Proper Pizza is Neapolitan - allegedly.

Best are just cheese n tom, thin n crispy.

I hate those big american sloppy pies, which are rank.

 

[Craig]

I worked for PE for a while in the early 2000s. Used to be privately-owned and was a very well-run business. All ingredients were sourced from Italy and high quality. It was never cheap, but the food was decent and the service great.

Were taken over by a private equity company during this time and slowly the quality food was replaced with crap, frozen products from south america and suddenly everything was vouchers and promos, kids menus, "would you like to go large" etc basically turning the operation into something akin to a Whitbread leisure site. Whereas previously the restaurants were interesting refurbs of old banks and the like, shopping centres and leisure/bowling type places became the norm.

Sounds like the asset stripping has continued unabated, with presumably another resultant drop in quality. Haven't eaten in one of their restaurants in about seven years and instead learnt to make my own pizzas with great success...

[leonardratso]

i am chinese and i am highly offended by your use of the word rank.

(and my investment in your uk pizza chain is a load of rank).

[dgul]

2 hours ago, spygirl said:

 

Or, better, remove IR discounts from tax.

Well, that's the clincher.  The whole things works by moving debt around.

I'm not sure it should be removed altogether, just changed in the way it works.

[eg, it is actually about investment -- so allow tax deduction of investment costs, including interest where applicable.  Sure, this would change quite a few 'ways of doing things' for UK business, but as it stands the way debt is managed for tax is weird*]

[* I'm sure accountants would disagree]

[spygirl]

12 minutes ago, dgul said:

Well, that's the clincher.  The whole things works by moving debt around.

I'm not sure it should be removed altogether, just changed in the way it works.

[eg, it is actually about investment -- so allow tax deduction of investment costs, including interest where applicable.  Sure, this would change quite a few 'ways of doing things' for UK business, but as it stands the way debt is managed for tax is weird*]

[* I'm sure accountants would disagree]

I set up SpivCo.

I borrow ~100m @ 10%.

I then buy WellRunCo, 200m revenue n 10m profit, for 100m, paying ~3m corporation tax.

As a new member of SpivCo group, I service the ~10m IR by offsetting it against the WellRunCO tax bill.

What was WellRunCo tax bill drops to 0.

Im sure by applying SPivCos patented operating procedures I can achieve savings of ~7m out of the group i.e. sack people, offload fixed assets etc etc etc.

 

[One percent]

Was in pizza express on Euston Road a couple of weeks ago. The prices have increased again. Only used it because the local independent does not have air con and it was 37 degrees. The independent is far superior and a lot less money 

[spygirl]

On a similar theme Kraft-Hienz are lurching down n down

Another 1.2bln of writedown.

Way to add share holder value

https://www.google.com/search?q=kraft+hizn+share+price&rlz=1C1CHBD_en-GBGB837GB837&oq=kraft+hizn+share+price&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.3887j1j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

28 minutes ago, One percent said:

Was in pizza express on Euston Road a couple of weeks ago. The prices have increased again. Only used it because the local independent does not have air con and it was 37 degrees. The independent is far superior and a lot less money 

Sod that.

They shrink the plates and portions sizes too.

The starters are laughable.

[One percent]

1 minute ago, spygirl said:

On a similar theme Kraft-Hienz are lurching down n down

Another 1.2bln of writedown.

Way to add share holder value

https://www.google.com/search?q=kraft+hizn+share+price&rlz=1C1CHBD_en-GBGB837GB837&oq=kraft+hizn+share+price&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.3887j1j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Sod that.

They shrink the plates and portions sizes too.

The starters are laughable.

We just have dough balls. 

This is much better 👍

https://www.pizzasophia.com/

[Errol]

Pizza company with debt of £1.1bn. Haha! Let them burn. Deserve to go to the wall.

[spygirl]

I think the problem is brands dont work anymore, with smart phones n all.

Sure, pizza express was worth it in the 70s n 80s when there wasnt much in the way of pizzas - i dont think i had a pizza til i was 19. I had pizza bread from a bakery which was cheese n tomato sauce, as in heinz, on bread.

I didnt have what id call a proper pizza til i was 26ish, and that was in italy. Thankfully, you can find good wood fired pizza in the uk. Even proper buffalo mozerella.

These days, if i want pizza or noodles or whatever, i use tripadvisor.

[SNACR]

8 hours ago, spygirl said:

PizzaExpress debt in the spotlight

Casual-dining chain faces challenges in UK and overseas

https://www.ft.com/content/2658c49a-b919-11e9-8a88-aa6628ac896c

It was launched in Soho, London, in 1965 by restaurateur Peter Boizot and in 2014 was acquired for £900m by Hony Capital, a Chinese private equity group. 

In its 2018 accounts it reported net debt of £1.1bn, with interest charges of £93.1m, resulting in a pre-tax loss of £55m. 

Why in fucksake wld a Chinese PE outfit buy a pizza outfit in the UK? Other than they had a lot of bent money to flush.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/758382/pizza-express-group-revenue/

£543m gross revenue.

Assuming 50% margins, giving ~240m of gross profit. There'll be high labour costs AND ~£100m of interest to service.

Fucking nuts.

Leveraged buy out, loading debt onto the target need better rules.

Or, better, remove IR discounts from tax.

 

 

 

 

Gross margin of 50%???

Give over

[spygirl]

6 minutes ago, SNACR said:

Gross margin of 50%???

Give over

I dont know.

Most sitdown eateries run on 50% gross.

Less cooky, higher turnover , takeaway drops to 20%

[SNACR]

6 minutes ago, spygirl said:

I dont know.

Most sitdown eateries run on 50% gross.

Less cooky, higher turnover , takeaway drops to 20%

I work off 70% in non-food.

I would have said more like at least 80% probably more.

[spygirl]

10 minutes ago, SNACR said:

I work off 70% in non-food.

I would have said more like at least 80% probably more.

Foods 50%

Booze 70%

Those are targets.

You can trade margin for volume, if you are lucky.

[SNACR]

8 minutes ago, spygirl said:

Foods 50%

Booze 70%

Those are targets.

You can trade margin for volume, if you are lucky.

I find it hard to imagine they're spending £6.50 net of vat on ingredients for a pizza in the menu at £15?

[spygirl]

21 minutes ago, SNACR said:

I find it hard to imagine they're spending £6.50 net of vat on ingredients for a pizza in the menu at £15?

Maybe not pizza, which are an accountants dream.

But the brake bros special with side order of veg that needs prepping n cooking.

[spygirl]

Quick google for the margin.

https://www.thecaterer.com/articles/57649/costing-a-menu

GP 60 -70%

Most places i worked hsve been fishnchips or pubfood.

Food is a business i would not enter. Ever.

Barriers of entry too low.

[Craig]

Most eateries work to a GP of 70% or thereabouts. Seem to remember Pizza Express' being significantly higher than that, though can't remember the exact details. Consider something like doughballs, the dough probably costs about 5p, garlic butter about the same again. Retails for what, £2.95 or so? 

The writing was on the wall for me when they started taking a cut of waiters' tips. Used to be pretty lucrative, and plenty of ways to maximise income too... 

[spygirl]

22 minutes ago, Craig said:

Most eateries work to a GP of 70% or thereabouts. Seem to remember Pizza Express' being significantly higher than that, though can't remember the exact details. Consider something like doughballs, the dough probably costs about 5p, garlic butter about the same again. Retails for what, £2.95 £4+ or so? 

The writing was on the wall for me when they started taking a cut of waiters' tips. Used to be pretty lucrative, and plenty of ways to maximise income too... 

 

[Craig]

Fuck me. Four quid for a plate of dough? Told you it'd been a while since I'd visited one. 

Quite telling that they don't have the prices on their website... 

[spygirl]

Same idea

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7340181/Costa-shrinks-cup-sizes-coffee-drinkers-less.html

Its mainly fucking hot water.

Go to maccyds. Better coffee, much cheaper.

[stoobs]

On 08/08/2019 at 12:10, spygirl said:

 

It was launched in Soho, London, in 1965 by restaurateur Peter Boizot and in 2014 was acquired for £900m by Hony Capital, a Chinese private equity group. 

I initially read that as Horny Capital. 

[King Penda]

Even me from a doss hole in stoke has only been in a pitza place twice in my life and never had one delivered however the x loves em and so does the lodgers girlfriend maybe it’s a woman thing in the main