Wetherspoon calls an end to the pubs gloom

JD Wetherspoon, the budget beer pubs group, today reported its busiest ever August, one year on from the debilitating effect of the nationwide smoking ban.

For the five weeks to 31 August Wetherspoons said like-for-like sales were up 1.1% and total sales 5.5% better after a torrid previous 12 months in which bar sales were down by 4.3% and group like-for-likes were 1.1% lower.

"Customers are slowly adapting to the non-smoking environment," said Martin, Wetherspoon's chairman and the man who founded the chain 29 years ago.

"That is simply mirroring the effect in other countries which have brought in smoking bans, where after a time, maybe a year maybe two years, the customer returns."

City analysts are already jumping on the Wetherspoon bandwagon, suggesting its recipe of cut-price beer and cheap food is attracting cash-strapped Britons who are trading down.

Others are arguing that Wetherspoons is also benefiting from the poor weather as its chain tends to have less outside drinking space than some rivals.

Wetherspoons has benefited from increased eating in pubs. While bar sales are continuing drop generally, it said within its 11% crash in pre-tax profits in the year to the end of July, food sales are up nearly 8%.

Martin said food sales, which include drinkswithfood sales, now account for 60% of Wetherspoon sales though he does not believe that ratio will grow any further.

Wetherspoons is paying a final dividend of 7.6p meaning its total for the year is held at 12p.

That compares to its giant rival Punch Taverns, which this year scrapped its final divi.