# J D Wetherspoon reports 3.7% rise in like-for-like sales for Q1 2026

- Link: https://www.directorstalkinterviews.com/j-d-wetherspoon-reports-3-7-rise-in-like-for-like-sales-for-q1-2026/4121224494
- Published: 2025-11-05T07:49:12+00:00
- Author: Amilia Stone

**J D Wetherspoon plc **(LON:JDW) has published its scheduled trading update announcement
for the 14 weeks to 2 November 2025, comprising quarter one (Q1) and a further week.

**Current trading**

Like-for-like (LFL) sales in the first 14 weeks of the financial year were 3.7% 
higher than the same period last year. Bar sales increased by 5.7%, food by 0.9%
and slot/fruit machines by 8.9%. Hotel room sales decreased by 6.3%.

Total sales have grown by 4.2% in the year to date.

The “CGA RSM Hospitality Business Tracker” reports monthly LFL sales for a number
of multi-outlet pub and restaurant companies.

In September, the latest month for which information is available, the tracker reported
industry sales of +0.2%, compared to +3.4% for Wetherspoon.

Wetherspoon has outperformed the tracker for 37 consecutive months.

**Property**

In the year-to-date, excluding franchises, the company has opened four pubs – in
Kenilworth (Warwickshire), Paddington Basin (London), London Bridge Station and 
Basildon (Essex). The company plans to open a total of 15 pubs in the financial 
year.

In addition, the leases of two pubs at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham
expired, one of which has reopened as a Wetherspoon franchise.

**Franchises**

A total of 11 pubs now operate as Wetherspoon franchises, including five run by 
Haven Holiday Parks, two by university student unions and two by Papas, a family-
owned group of 20 restaurants, founded in 1966.

Three of the franchised pubs have opened in the year-to-date.

We estimate an additional 12 franchised openings in the current financial year, 
making 15 in total.

**Outlook**

> **J D Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin said:**
> “In our recent annual report, it was stated that a “main lesson of the 1970s (
> is that) if energy prices go up… inflation results and almost everyone is poorer.”
> “The point was also made that the proposed development of “standby” nuclear power,
> for periods when wind and solar energy were unavailable, would require the UK 
> to approximately match France’s 59 nuclear reactors.
> “However, the UK has only nine nuclear reactors today, most of which are due to
> be decommissioned by 2030.
> “So far, the logic of the points made in the annual report has not been questioned
> and more detailed arguments, emphasising the need for wider public debate, are
> advanced in the most recent edition of Wetherspoon News (https://www.jdwetherspoon.
> com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Tims-viewpoint-WNEWS-winter-spring-2025.pdf ).
> “A second point made in the annual report is the startling fact that none of the
> chairmen of the mega-successful US technology companies (Microsoft, Apple, Meta,
> Amazon, Nvidia etc) comply with UK corporate governance guidelines, which include,
> for example, a ludicrous “nine-year rule”.
> “As a matter of common sense, few sensible technology entrepreneurs would envisage
> a London flotation for this reason alone.
> “Perhaps the UK powers-that-be don’t feel we need to try and attract these sorts
> of companies. However Nvidia, alone, is apparently worth nearly one and a half
> times the capitalisation of the entire London stock market.
> “I have written about the absurdities of corporate governance for many years- 
> for example in this article from 2014 (https://www.propelinfonews.com/pi-Newsletter.
> php?datetime=2014-10-13%2010:00:00 ). Strangely, almost no one has ever contradicted
> the points made- yet nothing much has changed either.
> “A final and related point concerns wages and taxation. The average price of a
> pint in pub is about £5.16 and labour is about 35% of the ex-VAT sales price (
> Mitchells & Butlers 36.2%, FY24), about £1.50 per pint.
> “A supermarket pint costs about £1.50 and labour is about 12% of the ex-VAT sales
> price (Tesco 12.0%, FY24), about £0.15 per pint.
> “Therefore, it can be seen that a 10 per cent wage rise will increase the cost
> of a pint by about 15 pence in a pub versus about 1.5 pence in a supermarket.
> “Increased labour costs are, consequently, dramatically widening the pricing differential
> between pubs and supermarkets, to the anger and consternation of customers. 
> “A further widening of the differential results from pubs paying 20% VAT on food
> sales, whereas supermarkets pay nothing.
> “As investment bank Morgan Stanley pointed out in recent research, pubs have lost
> 50% of their beer volumes to supermarkets since the year 2000- price is surely
> the main culprit.
> “It is important to emphasise the above points since it’s not clear that they 
> are fully appreciated by legislators, economists or the public.
> “The company is pleased with the continued sales momentum but is mindful of the
> Chancellor’s Budget statement later this month and, as a result, is slightly more
> cautious in its outlook for the remainder of the year.”

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