9th Jan 2007 07:00
Domino's Pizza UK & IRL PLC09 January 2007 9 January 2007 Domino's Pizza UK & IRL plc Announcement of Trading Update & Announcement of Board Promotion Domino's Pizza UK & IRL plc ("Domino's Pizza" or "the Company" or "the Group")today announces total like-for-like sales growth of 9.7% for the 52 weeks ended31 December 2006 (2005: 7.1%). Like-for-like sales for the six weeks to 31December 2006 increased by 13.1% (2005: 3.6%), bringing the year to anotherstrong close. The Christmas period was supported by another successful product launch forDomino's Pizza. The "MeltDown", its spiciest pizza available, gave the Group astrong news platform from which to communicate with new and existing customers.The campaign served to drive sales across the menu. The Company's e-commerce platform continues to be its fastest-growing channel tomarket and attracted record numbers of new customers as well as delivering anaverage ticket value that is typically 25% higher than orders placed by phone.E-commerce sales grew by 43.8% in 2006 and reached sales of £20.1 million (2005:£13.9 million) for Domino's in the UK. The Company continued to deliver against its expansion programme with theopening of 46 new stores (2005: 50). During the year two stores were closed(2005: nil), bringing the year-end store count to 451. The Company is also pleased to announce the promotion of Chris Moore from ChiefOperating Officer to Deputy Chief Executive with immediate effect. Chrisrecently assumed board-level responsibility for the company's three commissariesand this promotion reflects his extended remit. Stephen Hemsley, Chief Executive, commented, "Another year of strong like-for-like sales growth is attributable to ourongoing efforts to develop fresh and appealing menu options, maintain highstandards in our stores and take great care of our customers. The MeltDownlaunch at the end of the year, in particular demonstrated that taking a freshapproach to new product development and multi channel marketing continues tostrengthen our leadership of the home delivery pizza market. "Although we did not achieve our goal of 50 new stores in 2006, we wereencouraged by the accelerated openings of 25 in the second half of the year andadding 46 stores remains very good progress. I am particularly pleased thatthese new stores have opened with higher sales than in previous years,reflecting the additional operations and marketing support that we have providedto franchisees at launch. Securing sufficient A5 property of the right qualityand location remains a challenge but one we are determined to rise to in 2007. "The Board is delighted to further recognise Chris's major contribution to thebusiness with this promotion. It reflects the outstanding improvements he hasdriven across the business, particularly in the areas of marketing andoperations. I am confident that in addition he will do a tremendous job ofdirecting the three commissaries which together constitute one of our mostimportant income streams. "The Board is confident that your Company will deliver full year 2006 profitsahead of current expectations and will update the market further on 20 February2007 with the publication of the Company's preliminary results for the yearended 31 December 2006." ENDS For further information, please contact: Lee Ginsberg, Finance Director+ 44 (0) 1908 580611 or +44 (0) 07887 734 064 Rachel Wattel, PR & Communications Controller+ 44 (0) 1908 58072 or + 44 (0) 7876 144342 Fiona Noblet, Anthony Arthur, Chris Matthews, Hogarth Partnership+ 44 (0) 20 7357 9477 Notes to Editors: •Domino's Pizza Group Limited is the leading operator in the UK and Ireland's fast-growing pizza delivery market and is a subsidiary of AIM-listed Domino's Pizza UK & IRL plc (symbol: DOM). Domino's Pizza Group Ltd holds the exclusive licence to own, operate and franchise Domino's Pizza stores in the UK and Ireland. The first UK store opened in 1985 and the first Irish store opened in 1991. •As at 31 December 2006, there were 451 stores in the UK and Ireland. Of these, 361 stores are in England, 34 are in Scotland, 15 are in Wales, 11 are in Northern Ireland and 30 are in the Republic of Ireland. •As part of a commitment to delivering more to the communities served by its stores, Domino's Pizza Group Limited is proud to support Special Olympics GB and Special Olympics Ireland. •Founded in 1960, Domino's Pizza is the recognised world leader in pizza delivery. Through its primarily franchised system, Domino's operates a global network of over 8,000 stores in more than 55 countries. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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