Rank profits hit as bingo punters stay away
Profits were down for The Rank Group in the six months to the end of December after warm summer weather kept people away from its Mecca bingo halls. The group saw its adjusted profit before tax slip 23% to £27.7 million on revenue of £352m.
There was a 26% like-for-like fall in operating profit at its Grosvenor Casinos venues and a 38% fall in operating profit to £13.9m at Mecca.
This was despite a 16% growth in revenue as the group successfully completed the integration of the 19 casinos acquired from Gala in May last year and invested £11.9m in new product and casino refurbishments.
Chief executive Ian Burke said the first half of the current financial year was challenging with like-for-like brand performances down on the same period last year.
He said the very challenging bingo market had contributed to a decline in Mecca performance as customer visits fell by 8% in the half year. The hot weather in July also contributed to the reduced number of visitors. Mecca's revenue was down 2% to £143.5m.
Mr Burke said Rank anticipated that operating profit in the second half of the year, excluding the impact of the acquired casinos, would be broadly in line with the comparable period last year.
Revenue and profit improvement plans are expected to deliver improved results. Rank said it was also redesigning its websites and improving digital and mobile gaming.
